The Essentials of Globalisation.
Globalisation is the most important revolution of our time; on the one hand widely resented and denounced, on the other all too frequently presented as inevitable. Ranging from the shanty towns of Sao Paulo to the London townhouse that has revolutionised the telecommunications industry, and from the borders of Russia to the sex industry in the San Fernando valley, this book mounts a powerful and level-headed defence of globalisation - a phenomenon which, for all its faults, is enhancing our concept of individual freedom.
What is the future of democracy and the nation state? Should business go global - and to what extent are they? Are we creating a winner take all society? Does globalisation mean the triumph of junk culture? Why is the UN so weak? What will happen to your career? 'A Future Perfect' unveils a new meritocratic global ruling class, which it dubs the Cosmocrats; but it also addresses the losers - from car workers in the US to the environment in Bangkok. Globalisation, argue the authors, can only be understood within a historical context - this global age may be fundamentally different from its predecessors, but it is also a precarious one. This book is the most powerful explanation yet of why if must be defended.