The International Monetary Foundation defines globalization as ôthe growing economic interdependence of countries worldwide through increasing volume and variety of
cross-border transactions in goods and services, freer international capital flows, and more rapid and widespread diffusion of technologyö (World Economic Outlook,
Globalization is a buzzword with many and sometimes contradictory meanings. It has economic, cultural, and technological aspects. Some see it as the panacea for
humanityÆs problems, solving world poverty through so-called æfree tradeÆ, and bringing the blessings of democracy and an American-style consumer society to the roughly half of the world in dire poverty. Others see it as corporate imperialism, in which the sovereignty of nations and their prime duty to look after the interests of their citizens are subverted through the influence of undemocratic quasi-governmental organizations such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and treaties as NAFTA and CAFTA.
There is much truth to the ironic criticism of globalization that it seeks to privatise profit and democratize costs. Through globalization the poor countries of the world are pressured to divest themselves of their natural resources and cut social services. In turn for ever-increasing debt through credits advanced by the international lending institutions, multinational corporations privatize Third World resources and exploit their poverty for cheap labor.
If there is any company that has used technology to benefit from the economic form of globalization, it is the worldÆs largest corporation, ExxonMobil. The Irving,
Texas-based company extracts, refines, and markets oil, gas, and petrochemical products worldwide. In 2004 ExxonMobil had revenues of $298 billion and operations in nearly 200 countries and territories (http://www2.exxonmobil.com/Corporate/Newsroom/Newsreleases/xom_nr_260203.asp
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