A changing world

(Blog 3): A Changing World
Although we may not realize it, the world that we live in is constantly changing from one year to the next, and from one generation to the next. In today’s post, I will be noting changes and differences in pop culture from the past, to the presence, and make some predictions about the future. Although we mostly think small in terms of changes, “changes are not confined to specific nation-states. Rather, they are implicated in processes of globalization” (Barker 141). Our single nation is not the only thing undergoing change as the years pass by. Instead, it is how different countries affect one another that truly create change, whether it is for better or for worse. Things are not changing in a simple manner. Instead of simplicity, change is “multidirectional and chaotic rather than singular and linear” (Barker 141).
One major issue that continues to rise in popular culture is the changing economy. This has been seen by the “concentration and centralization of industrial, banking, and commercial capital in the context of increasingly regulated markets” (Barker 151). Many years ago we did not think so much about money, jobs, and such—but now in our current economic status, they seem more vital than ever. In terms of a changing and challenging economy, states have altered they way they see their relationships with other states. As a result of our economic situation, the “global recession hastened a renewed globalization of world economic activity” (157).
For example, China is trying to rise in power and eventually overtake the USA. Additionally, the place where we get most of our oil from, Iraq, has gotten much negative light regarding the September 11th attacks and remains as controversial as ever. This all results in a highly competitive world where “the development of the extractive/manufacturing industry” (Barker 151) works “as the dominant sector, together with the growth of very large industrial cities” (151). Because China manufactures much of our goods and at the same time is rising in global power, our state and government must be careful to remain both in good relationship with them and be able to stand its own ground.
Globalization is referred to as an “increasing consciousness of the world” (155), and today we are becoming much more aware of our planet than before due to several things, in addition to the aforementioned items. The craze of global warming has been brought to much of our attention, and other global/natural disasters affect our thinking of the environment including Hurricane Katrina, the Japanese disaster, tornadoes, and so many others.