BLOC FORMATION AND SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
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BLOC FORMATION AND SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
by
I would like to, if I may, open up a new topic on PSN...the passage of the GATT treaty and the new powers given to the World Trade Organization has given support to those who hold to the view that a New World Order emerged since the collapse of bureaucratic socialism in East Europe.
I would like to advance the thesis that what we will see for the next half century or so is the formation of some 10 or 12 socio-economic blocs which will be the central actors...rather than a New World Order run by the big Seven.
I will list my own set of candidates for bloc formation together with some observations...upon which others might like to comment.
A. Emerging Blocs [and anchor points]:
1. NAB: The North American Bloc: Toronto, New York, Denver, Dallas, Mexico City. Might include some Central American States...even Cuba.
2. WEB: The Western European Bloc: Berlin, Paris, London, Rome, Helsinki ?, Athens. Might include New Zealand, Australia.
3. PER: The Pacific East Rim Bloc: Tokyo, Taipei ?, Manila ?, Singapore. Might include New Zealand...less likely Australia.
4. SEAB: The Southeast Asian bloc: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Taipai ?, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Phnom Penh, Guangzhou, Beijing.
5. SSEB: The former Socialist Soviet Econ Bloc: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kharkov, Kiev, Novosibirsk.
6. CEEB: The Central European Bloc: Stockholm ?, Helsinki ?, Warsaw, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Sofia, Athens ?, Ankara??
7. BBIS: Burma, Bangladesh? India, Sri Lanka. All by itself, India is an economic bloc [as is China].
8. MEB: The Islamic Economic Bloc: Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur?, Karachi, Tehran, Baghdad, Mecca, Damascus, Cairo, Tripoli, Algiers, Rabat. Israel??
9. SSAB: The sub-saharan economic Bloc: Lagos, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Pretoria, Luanda, Kinshasa, Kampala. Maybe Israel??
10. SAC: The South American Cone: Might extend up to the Panama Canal; might include Cuba?
B. Factors affecting Bloc Formation:
1. Cultural Factors: Language, Religion, 'Ethnicity.'
2. Colonial Past/present economic ties.
3. Proximity.
4. Past alliances/emnities
5. Resources
6. Strategic locatios.
7. Pattern of bloc formation elsewhere.
C. Some [more]conjectures:
1. Loose but important global structures continue to develop:
a. communications, banking, transport, trade
b. transnational corporations continue to be central players.
c. Legal bodies continue to extend purview.
2. Legal power tends to replace military power as means to resolve all but local differences.
3. Religion and the god concept changes as bloc formation and globalization continues...organized religion continues to be very important to both private lives and public policy.
4. Domestic social problems are ever more tightly linked to the globalization of trade, finance, generation ever new social problems; ever new solutions...no end of history possible in complex, trans- national socio-economic dynamics.
5. Repositories of Morality/transcendent critique:
a) The State and various transnational bodies
b) Organized religion and emergent charismatic groups
c) Social movements and street politics...esp in the '3rd' world.
d) The University, Critical Theory, Affirmative Postmodern scholarship.
e) Marginalized groups: 'race,' class, gender, ethnic, artistic. It should be an interesting century as both knowledge and religion combine with politics and economics to keep progressive scholars busy and conservative scholars unhappy.
ADDENDUM: February 13, 1996.
There is a lot of speculation about the 'fragmentation' of the nation-state into ethnic enclaves. The effort to form an independent Quebec, the fracturing of the former Yugoslavia as well as the collapse of the old USSR are cited as cases in point. I think these are best seen as temporary adjustments to fiscal crises in both east and west...Bureaucratic socialism failed; it was to rigid; too centralized. Laissez faire capitalism is far too harmful to community, family and the underclasses. People have three generic solutions:
1. Religions; both New Age and Fundamentalist. Established, comfortable religions are good enough for those who make it in a time of turmoil but not for those who don't.
2. Ethnic/Racist Enclaves; Ethnicity and Racism offer community and solidarity in a time of vicious economics. They appear to offer a solution to both political and economic problems...usually at the expense of other ethnic/racial groups.
3. Social Democracy. Those nationåtates which have resources enough to provide for both capital growth and social justice do not fragment. Sweden, Denmark, Germany, England, Japan and to some degree, the USA all have troubles but by and large do not have the violence of real fragmentation...yet.
Then too, there are several untried solutions which may work to solve the problem of solidarity and social justice:
1. Democratic socialism. If Cuba, Kerala State, China and other overly centralized states can democratize while they are still fairly well intact, they may offer an alternative to the three above.
2. Market Socialism. Several people are doing interesting work on market socialism. David Schweigert has a new book, Against Capitalism, which has recieved favorable reviews.
Bert Ollman has a new collection coming out which could be important.
3. Liberation Theology has great promise. Phillip Berryman continues this most remarkable tradition. See his, Stubborn Hope: Religion, Politics and Revolution in Central America.