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Xenophobia Goes Global
An additional challenge for clean energy development is to avoid reinforcing the new wave of xenophobic tendencies.
In a previous post, Michael examines how appealing to xenophobic tendencies has become a fundamental strategy for attacking any issues intended to address the health and welfare needs of the poor. By extension, this piece suggests how xenophobic appeal could extend to attacks on environmental efforts on the diplomatic front. Michael's connection is an important one because we know from history environmental concerns, particularly during times of economic hardship, are easily overwhelmed by the politics of insecurity. Michaels focused on domestic politics, but, perhaps, more disturbing was the piece Rise of Nationalism Frays Global Ties: Trade, Environment, Face New Threats. The article's premise is that the trend towards globalization is ending and we have entered an epoch of "new nationalism." Primary indicators of the shift are barriers to foreign investment (remember Dubai Ports), expansion of state ownership (petro-nationalism), and immigration restriction. In this environment, one must be concerned about the ability to forge agreements that reflect the interest of the commons. Remember the French rejected the European constitution. Under these conditions, the challenge becomes one of emphasizing why clean energy is in the national economic interest without further reinforcing a xenophobe culture. This is one more commentator looking forward to Michael's suggestions. 1 COMMENTS: Post a comment |
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I am really worried about xenophobia. It's not just fear of terrorism. It's also conflict with China, which is really inevitable since many people have an outdated image of China as a Cold War enemy. In fact, it's taken the place of the USSR in some ways. A lot of this also has to do with what the media is optimized for. Xenophobia and nationalism sell and is cheap to make. It's actually unclear if the internet and social networking really helps or just makes things worse. On one hand, much more information is available. On the other hand, people who agree simply reinforce each other.
Posted by: yang at April 30, 2008 10:11 PM