What is the relation between politics and globalization? / Sangmin Choe

1)

Political globalization concerns an approach to the social world that stresses postnational and transnational processes as well as a consciousness of the compressed nature of space and time.For some, processes of political globalization open up new emancipatory possibilities, while for others globalization could lead to a loss of autonomy and the fragmentation of the social world. Political globalization can be understood as a tension between three processes which interact to produce the complex field of global politics : global geopolitics, global normative culture and polycentric networks.

1) global geopolitics

Democracy is the most common and most desired form of political globalization. Globalization does not undermine the democratic nation-state but gives it worldwide acceptability. Various political ideologies are being born in democratic countries. The globalization of democratic became the new world order.

2) global normative culture 

It means cultural norms that are mostly acceptable upon globally. As a result of global communication and popular culture etc., political communication is now also global in scope, no longer confined to national borders. The heightened awareness of human rights and environmental issues worldwide focusing on the sustainability are the cases of the global normative culture. This global normative culture provides normative reference points for states and an orientation for political actors.

3)  polycentric networks

The process of political globalization is associated with networks and flows, new sources of mobility and communication, and denote new relationships between the individual, state and society. 

polycentric networks are associated with emerging forms of global governance which representatively include global civil society. This is less relevant with states and does not undermine global normative culture. One of the distinctive features of global civil society is that it does not have one space but many. It is polycentric and not based on any single principle of organization other than the fact that it is globally organized through loosely structured horizontal coalitions and networks of activists.

These three dimensions are connected together. These appear in the the status quo including transformation of nationality and citizenship, the public sphere and political communication, civil society and space and borders.

1) transformation of nationality and citizenship

The status of the states has changed. Still, the state has strong power. However, a more globally connected nation state has become a component of the global organization and a major vectors for world capitalism. Two kinds of decoupling processes are evident: the decoupling of nationality and citizenship and the decoupling of nationhood and statehood. The state no longer defines 100 percent of an individual's citizenship. The decoupling of nationality and citizenship can be attributed to the impact of global normative culture, which has led to a blurring of the boundary between national and international law.

2) transformation of the public sphere and political communication

In the past, it was delivered unilaterally by a small number of people, such as elites and governments, on a centralized system basis, and the identity of citizens was formed under the control of the state. But now communication is not completely controlled by the elite or the government. As globalization progresses, the global public now communicates with each other, and global communication has a strong power. To form a global discourse, presenting issues on rights, environmental issues, health and security.

3) transformation of civil society

As globalization progresses, a new political form is emerging, and at the heart of it is a globalized civil society. Social movements across regions and borders are spreading. For a healthy civil society , the state should not interfere too much or control it.

4) transformation of space and borders.

The role and meaning of borders and spaces have been reevaluated in the political arena. The rescaling of politics as a consequence of globalization has caused a major reassessment of the role and meaning of borders and spaces in the construction of polities. Globalization conjures up an image of no boundaries but we are increasingly conscious of the shrinking dimensions or compression of an increasingly interconnected world and the way in which this renders the globe meaningful and brings it within the grasp of all individuals. The idea of a spatial turn denotes an increasing interest in the processes by which social space is constructed and the way space is constitutive of social and political relations, not merely the pre-given environment within which social conflicts, institutionalization, governance and social transformations are played out. The focus on new spaces and new forms of connectivity has led to a realization that space is constitutive of social and political relations, not simply a ‘given’ which comes with the territory.

Looking at this phenomenon of political globalization, we face three dilemmas. First of all, we can find flaws in democracy. In addition, identity formation based on global normative culture can also lead to totalitarian thinking. A new state of tension has been created by political globalization, in which the global civil society can be formed for bad purposes, not just for good purposes.

2)

I have not thought of the dilemma arising from political globalization. Through this reading assignment, I was able to think about the problems that could arise from political globalization. First of all, global citizenship can lead to a new method of collectivism.  Now that diversity is considered essential for progress and development, I thought that the global citizenship, which emphasizes diversity, could be a stumbling block.  When I read the sentence that global citizenship could be the basis for new collectivism, I thought of excessive PC. Political correctness (PC) is the talk of the world. In Disney, a black actress played the Little Mermaid, and Captain America became black. I also oppose gender discrimination, racism, and disability discrimination, but I feel repulsed by PCs that excessively suppress other people's thoughts and claim that they are ‘always’ right. This, of course, has a good purpose, but the isolated attitude that only he is right causes problems. A paradox that insists on embracing diversity but rejects other. That's where we should always be on our guard.opinions. 

And I thought civil society was always established for good purposes, which was interesting that it could be created for bad purposes. Civil society learned in class or civil society encountered through media always had a good purpose, so I think I had a prejudice.

3)

When I was a high school student, a social studies teacher who was a Ph.D. at Seoul National University said her dream is to create a new ideology. As we have seen earlier, liberal democracy is also flawed. Liberal democracy is now the new normal of the world. Then do you think there will be a new political system that will replace liberal democracy? if you thought so What would it look like ? I think direct democracy can be realized with the development of technology and science. 

And there's a lot of talk about the Modern Monetary Theory(MMT). Basic income is also a big issue in Korea. How will this progressive politics change our society?