For President Donald Trump, it is about "Make America Great Again." French politician Marine Le-Pen believes that there is not a "Left or Right", but that the real fight is between "patriots and the globalists." For these nationalistic politicians, there is an intention to malign globalism by maligning the globalist elitists and making those who are opposed to them do not care about their nation's citizens. It is the "us versus them" and zero-sum mentalities that make up the mindset of the more nationalistic and protectionist elements in the Western world's politic.
This theme and reality came up when I was reading a Cato Institute essay that was published last week: The Moral Case for Globalization. I enjoyed reading the essay because it acted as a reminder of why I am in support of freer trade, borders, and expression of ideas. But first, a definition of what globalization is. As the essay's author, Cato Institute scholar Tom Palmer, explains, "Globalization is the relatively free movement of people, things, money, and ideas across national or political borders." Greater globalization means reducing or removing state-enforced restrictions on these voluntary exchanges. Ultimately, "a consequence of increasing globalization is an increasingly integrated and complex global system of production and exchange."
The principles of exchange for mutual advantage are vital for liberty. As Palmer points out, "There is evidence that our commonly accepted norms of morality emerge from trade, which established the importance of legitimate expectations and reputations, both of which are necessary fort he emergence of law and morality. Morality itself is a product of exchange, and the more trade, generally the more humane a society is."
There is also a consequentialist argument the author makes, mainly that reducing barriers to trade, travel, and other forms of exchange across borders "have been spectacularly positive for the world's poor, as wages have increased, jobs have become safer, and the use of children for labor has plummeted. Increasing wealth, in turn, is strongly connected to improving health, and the global spread of improvements in medicines and technologies has improved health outcomes even in regions that have not participated as much in the exchange of goods." Earlier this month, I wrote about how more free trade results in reduced poverty domestically and internationally, so this does not surprise me.
There are other benefits that Palmer mentions, including greater ability to preserve other cultures and traditions, as well as greater reduction in war democracy and peace become more salient norms. To echo the author's conclusion, "The world is better when barriers to free and voluntary cooperation are reduced. The world is better because of globalization." It is difficult not to come to this conclusion after reviewing the data across multiple topics.
My 1,000th blog entry was dedicated to why I am libertarian from ethical and consequentialist lenses, which includes the importance of globalization. Allowing more people to be freer, healthier, happier, and more prosperous seems like a noble goal, which is why advocating for removing those barriers that stifle voluntary and mutually beneficial exchange has been a major theme of this blog. For more information on the benefits of globalization, you can view the video from John Stossel released earlier this month debunking globalization myths or you can read the list of selected essays below.
- The Case for Globalism (American Enterprise Institute)
- Defending Globalization (American Institute for Economic Research)
- Food Globalization Puts Food on Your Plate (Cato Institute)
- Globalization: A Race to the Bottom or the Top? (Cato Institute)
- Globalization Creates a Global Neighborhood, Benefiting All (Cato Institute)
- The Globalization of Ideas Enriches the World (Cato Institute)
- Globalization: A Tinfoil Hat-Free Critique (Foundation for Economic Education)
- In Praise of Capitalist Globalization (Foundation for Economic Education)
- In Defense of Globalization (International Monetary Fund)
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