Democracy & the Global Economy

The media’s attention is on terrorism. Yet, in the background are other critical issues. Perhaps none so important as to what is happening to the global economy. The mantra of free trade and open markets has widened the gap between rich and poor nations. Level playing fields don’t seem very level to the have-nots. Democracy is weakened by powerful institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO. The U.S. largely dominates these organizations. The massive monopoly of resources by the U.S. and a handful of other countries has created tremendous imbalance and inequality. Vandana Shiva says, “The dispossession from the Earth’s natural wealth is at the root of instability.”