In The News

Cures for the French Disease

Eric Chaney April 25, 2007
More than 80 percent of registered voters in France cast ballots – selecting “young candidates who pledged to change French political habits,” writes Eric Chaney, a former French finance ministry official for “The Wall Street Journal.” Conservative Nicolas Sarkozy and socialist Ségolène Royal will face off in the May run-off election, offering voters a clear choice between “giving more freedom to...

Capitalist Tools Needed for Future Globalism Ills

Robert J. Shiller April 23, 2007
Fears about displacement caused by economic globalization have been at the forefront of the French presidential campaign, as Nicholas Sarkozy and Ségolène Royal head for the final election round in May. The sentiment expressed in candidate Nicolas Sarkozy’s call to end “speculative capitalism” finds resonance in many parts of the world, as governments attempt to interfere with global free trade...

The Establishment Rethinks Globalization

William Greider April 19, 2007
As the US readies for the 2008 presidential election, corporate executives have divided into two camps for advising candidates on how to proceed with globalization: Supporting free trade without limits is Robert Rubin, former treasury secretary under President Clinton, and urging reform of corporate globalization and preservation of a range of skills is Ralph Gomory, a former IBM executive who...

Managing Globalization: Has It Hurt US Workers?

Daniel Altman April 18, 2007
Workers in the wealthy nations like the US are not losing jobs to immigrants or outsourcing, suggests globalization analyst Daniel Altman in “The International Herald Tribune.” However, intense competition among global labor markets, along with rising health-care costs in the US, could be keeping the lid on wages. “The largest cost isn't those who lose their jobs but those who have lower...

French Voters Fear Globalization

Angela Doland April 17, 2007
As predicted, conservative Nicolas Sarkozy and Ségolène Royal captured the first round in the French presidential election that featured globalization as a central issue. According to a survey last year, 64 percent of the French view globalization as a threat to their nation’s commercial autonomy. Yet the election revealed varied perspectives: Some candidates favored globalization, but with...

West Rises in China’s Back Yard

Ariana Eunjung Cha April 17, 2007
Social mobility in China means more comfortable and attractive homes, and developers move fast to build homes and offices with a Western aesthetic. In Beijing, small housing developments such as Venice Aquatic City and Thames Town are modeled after villages scattered throughout Europe. Many Chinese associate foreign styles with wealth, and view their investment in such developments as a step up...

France: Whither Globalization?

Katrin Bennhold April 16, 2007
The main issue for the French is how to cope with globalization, suggests one analyst. “In few other West European countries do governments of all stripes pay such lip-service to the anti-globalization movement,” writes Katrin Bennhold for “The International Herald Tribune. France has benefited immensely from foreign investment – yet two thirds of voters view globalization as a “threat to jobs.”...