Anti-Globalization & Us

John Lennon's Imagine is one of my favorite songs. It goes: "Imagine there is no countries," calling for a union for all people in the world. That is really something. At least, that should require all trade barriers that divide markets in different places to be torn down. As he sang: "It isn't hard to do." i would say he was a dreamer, but certainly he was not the only one. The World Trade Organization met in Hong Kong this week to discuss how to open markets. Economist David Ricardo showed that trade will make all countries better off. But if Ricardo was right, and it isn't hard to do, how come we haven't done it?

The Hong Kong meeting is unlikely to reach any conclusion, as disputes over agricultural subsidies remained unsolved. In the street outside the venues are protestors including farmers, human rights activists, anti-Americanists, environmentalists, etc. They raised their concerns over world trade. Hong Kong people find the topics quite obscure. But in fact, globalization is affecting each of us, our jobs, as well as the way we do business and consume.

While we are busy learning English and Mandarin and doing homework for our "Continuing Education", we have to take care of clients and customers overseas. We better do these well, as China is chasing us from behind in the field of services and finance.

Last time, i tried to demonstrate that jobs are moving northward while even more are created here, as long as we keep inventing new things, ideas and services. In an ideal world, we are all happy. But the world is far from perfect, if i lose my job and can't find another one, my unemployment rate is 100%, not the official citywide 5.3%.

"Tom, finish your dinner -- people in China and India are starving." Thomas Friedman, in his book "The World Is Flat -- A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century", recalled what his mother told him, and his advice for his own kids are: "Girls, finish your homework -- people in China and India are starving for your jobs."

Manufacturing jobs have long outsourced to mainland China, while software programming find its way to India. Some fears that, as the trend goes, the big magnets will attract even the urban jobs.

Friedman classified workers who keep their jobs into four categories: "special", "specialized", "anchored" and "really adaptable".

By "special", Friedman really means it. Michael Jordan, Bill Gates, Barbara Streisand are in this category. i would add John Lennon, Bruce Lee, Diego Maradona and Ronnie O'Sullivan, the Rocket. You name it. Their jobs cannot be substituted. They actually benefit from globalization as it introduces them to more people.

Specialized people include lawyers, accountants, brain surgeons, computer architects and software engineers, according to Friedman. But i cannot agree. All of their jobs, but brain surgeons', can all be outsourced, or partly outsourced to low-cost locations once those locations foster enough specialists. Software programming in India is a prime example. China is nurturing accounting talents. The fact that brain surgeons cannot be outsourced is not because of the level of specialization but because of the "anchoring" nature of the job. That brings us to the next category.

Barbers, waitresses, chefs, plumbers, nurses and cleaning ladies are what Friedman means by anchored people. They must be at the same location as their customers to offer the face-to-face or physical-touch services. Friedman said these jobs cannot be outsourced. i think he would have a different view if he lived in Hong Kong. Over the past years, Hong Kong consumers travel to Shenzhen and Macau to enjoy big meals, massage and even dental care. In other words, even though some of these "anchored" jobs cannot travel, consumers can. Cleaning ladies and plumbers must stay. But their wages are declining as immigrants provide plenty of labor supply.

In my view, the only, realistic, category that cannot be outsourced is "decathletes", or what Friedman calls "really adaptable". People who are really adaptable have gained diverse experience and adopted different skills. They are versatile and learn fast, be open minded and ready to say: "Yes, I can." As i tried to demonstrate in the previous article, the world didn't end when jobs are outsourced. It will keep inventing new jobs. The question is whether you are able to take the new challenges. People in countries with advanced education, such as the U.S. and the U.K. have the advantages to this end.

Therefore, the U.S. should be the most supportive country for globalization, despite its growing protectionism. In China, in contrast, low-paid jobs are moving from Shenzhen and Dongguan to more remote areas inward the mainland. Some manufacturers have already moved to Vietnam where labors are even cheaper.

If you can't be Michael Jordan and a "decathlete", you got a problem. Countries that do not have enough Michael Jordan's and decathletes would be worrisome.

Unfortunately, most people in the world, especially in the poorer places, are neither Michael Jordan nor decathletes. Korean farmers cannot turn into Hyundai engineers, probably for their whole lifetime, let alone the unfairness arisen from agricultural subsidies in the rich countries. The governments should take care of their people and let them not starve.

Outsourcing is good to a selfish consumer that i am. How about outsourcing to the future? That sounds convenient. Globalization enables production to boom so fast that the damage to nature is getting out of control. Our next generations would be forced to pay the bill and clean up the mess. Law and regulations are catching up, but far too slowly. In many cases, scientists are unable to evaluate the consequences of the radical changes. The sky is turning gray, sometimes yellowish brown, and the summer is hotter. Outside my office in the Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estates, the mountains of rubbish grows up day by day. A free-trade world is a big dream, but reality check is badly needed to avoid a nightmare.

Nov 14, 2005
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