Globalization

One of most visible sign of the globalization of politics is evident in the establishment of the United Nations. The United Nations is an international organization that aims to ensure collective peace and security, providing assistance to humanitarian crises in the world. In the short history of the UN, some have argued that the UN has failed in its duty to uphold its intended objectives and aims. Also, some argue how the UN is filled with so much bureaucracy that undermines its effectiveness as an international body.

The most poignant example of UN’s failure to achieve its intended objectives and aims would nevertheless be the Rwandan genocide. Till today, it remains the stark reminder of the need for prompt and decisive international intervention. When the killings began on 6 April 1994 , the UN deployed peacekeeping troops to preserve peace and security. Later in light of the escalating violence, the UN Security Council voted unanimously to withdraw their peacekeeping troops. In a just a few days, thousands of Tutsis had been murdered. Yet throughout the carnage, the UN studiously refrained from labeling the mass killings as Genocide. Had the term been used, the UN would have been legally obliged to intervene, according to Article 1 of the convention on the prevention and punishment of genocide , which was adopted by UN. This is a prime example to demonstrate how UN has failed in achieving her intended aims.



Also, the UN suffers from a bloated bureaucracy, in which seniority is not linked to ability, resulting in painfully slow decision-making and operational failure in such crises as Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. Some UN organisations, such as UNESCO have been viewed as so corrupt, countries such as the USA and the UK have withdrawn from them , while the US Congress has long withheld part of the dues it owes to the UN in protest against corruption and money-wasting.

There are also institutional problems associated with the General Assembly and the Security Council, whereby GA resolutions with widespread support can be stymied by a single veto from one of the Permanent 5 . This has led to unilateral action by countries such as the USA and organisations such as NATO, undermining the authority of the UN, and to a lack of credibility for the UN in dealing with issues such as Israel and Palestine, where the USA among the P5 has strong interests. For example, in the United States of America, the establishment of the Clinton doctrine allows US to forcefully intervene to prevent human rights abuses, with or without the authority of the UN Security Council.

In a nutshell, the UN has shown itself to be a “tired” organization – worn-out from all its institutional problems and bloated bureaucracy. Indeed, the UN has been inefficient in the past, evident in operational failures in Bosnia and Rwanda. However, our saving grace is to know that UN’s actions are evolutionary. UN has succeeded in Kosovo in 2001, ending genocide swiftly, despite failing in 1994.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm

With the globalization of technology, the number of internet users is on the rise. Looking at the image below, you would get a general sense of how the statistics of internet users is receiving an upwards trend. The circled columns show the stark increase from 2000 to 2008.





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Technology has caught on with many and has become an integral part of the lives of many. Are you one who can survive without technology? Vote now, and share your views on this issue (click the comment button!)

Imagine this: you want to ask your friends out to go for dinner and a movie. Because cell phones have not been invented, you have to walk 5 kilometer to your friend’s house, ask him or her if they wanted to go with you, walk another 5 kilometer to ask another friend, and another 10 more kilometers to get back home and change.




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That was the Stone Age where nobody owned hand phones and communication was obviously a tedious process.

Fast forward to the 1900s where the first, two way radios were invented (they were known as mobile rigs). They were installed only in some vehicles such as ambulances and police cars. In 1940s Motorola came up with the first walkie talkie. This was a widely popular form of communication but of course, it could only be used when two people were within a certain distance from each other.


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“First Walkie talkie “

Now, in the year 2008, cell phones usage is raging. Cell phones now come with functions that blow the mind of many, touch screen phones, cameras that boost the same number of mega-pixels as digital cameras, phones that allow you to surf the internet anywhere anytime, phones that play music. The list is never-ending. No wonder so many people have caught on the craze of cell phones. Cell phones are no long just used for sending each others SMSes or just calling your friends to ask how to do a math question. Cell phones are now music players, cameras and many more jumbled into one.



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These are some statistics that show how technology has globalized.

• In the world, there are more than 2.4 billion cell phone users
• More than 1000 new customers are added every minute
• Mobile phone shipments grew 19 percent to 810 million units in 2005 and are expected to rise by 15 percent to 930 million units
• Cell phone usage in Africa is growing almost twice as fast as any other region and jumped from 63 million users two years ago to 152 million today.
(Taken from: http://www.revivaltimes.com/cellphonestats.html)