Globalization and Justice

In the 1990s, as capitalism continued to expand its reach and influence, the term "globalization" came to symbolize not only a more interconnected world, but the process by which a network of powerful financial institutions and multinational corporations gained increasing control over the world economy. While for many in the industrialized West this process has seemed inevitable and all for the good, for others in the West, and many others in the disadvantaged Third World, globalization appears to be a menacing specter, the means by which already wealthy interests seek to aggrandize their power and control at the expense of citizens in poor nations.

Will globalization promote or hinder social justice throughout the world? In this cogent analysis philosopher Kai Nielsen argues that in its present form capitalist globalization will only ensure that the rich get richer and the poor poorer. Noting that the ratio of the richest countries to the poorest has steadily grown larger under capitalism in the 20th century and that the total dollar value of the world economy has increased fivefold while the number of people living in poverty has doubled, Nielsen clearly demonstrates that globalization has made and still is making a bad situation worse.

While inveighing against capitalist globalization, he makes the important point that a globalization based on "market socialism" — to ensure both needed efficiency and an egalitarian conception of justice — would be a trend that people in all nations would welcome. Democratic socialism, despite historical betrayals and recent setbacks, Nielsen contends, is still humanity's best hope for achieving a classless, nonracist, and nonsexist world community. He devotes a number of chapters to a discussion of the critical theory that is the basis of this vision of a completely egalitarian international society, and he compares and contrasts his own position with that of such thinkers as Richard Rorty, John Rawls, Jnrgen Habermas, G. A. Cohen, and others.

Besides presenting evidence that capitalist globalization is not achieving rising worldwide prosperity, Nielsen also shows the potential threat to democracy that globalization poses. In a world where huge multinational conglomerates hold the purse strings, power is increasingly taken away from independent nation states and is exercised by corporate boards whose only motive is profit.

This well-argued critique of capitalist globalization and defense of democratic socialism as a viable alternative is essential reading for philosophers, political scientists, students of international relations, and anyone concerned about the future of democratic and egalitarian ideals.