Globalization Has Increased the Wealth Gap

Written on January 15th, 2007

Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz talks about what’s gone wrong with globalization.

January 15, 2007  |  Globalization was meant to be the great equalizer. Goods would flow easily across borders. Standards of living in poor countries would be raised. Governments would become more stable. Instead it has brought citizen protests, greater economic disparities between first- and third-world nations, and a complex trade regime that may well benefit only the richest in richest countries. What went wrong?

In his new book, “Making Globalization Work,” Nobel-prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz argues that the special interests of governments, corporations, and international organizations like the IMF and the World Bank have thrown globalization off its proper path. But he doesn’t stop there. He offers a practical vision for making globalization the equalizing force he believes it was always meant to be.

Joseph Stiglitz, University Professor at Columbia University, was chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers during the Clinton administration and later chief economist and senior vice president of the World Bank. His book, “Globalization and Its Discontents,” was translated into 35 languages and has sold more than 1 million copies worldwide.

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Bioneers 2006: The Future is Green

Written on October 21st, 2006
Kenny Ausubel, the revolutionary founder of this weekend’s 17th annual Bioneers conference speaks up about nature, science, and green-ing the future.

October 21, 2006  |  Thousands who can imagine a future of revolutionary, evolutionary, and visionary success will gather this weekend in the San Francisco Bay area. They share a vision that our planet’s future is not dead, mechanical, or separate — but rather alive, evolving, and composed of interdependent systems.

This world view inspires the 17th annual Bioneers conference, taking place this weekend (October 20-22nd) in San Rafael, Calif. and streaming via satellite to more than a dozen sites across the country.

Speakers at this year’s conference include Amy Goodman of Democracy Now!; Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma; Lois Gibbs, grassroots champion of environmental justice at Love Canal; and Carl Anthony, founder of Earthjustice’s Urban Habitat program, among others.

I had a chance to speak with Bioneers’ founder and co-director, Kenny Ausubel. In addition to his work with Bioneers, Ausubel is an award-winning writer, filmmaker, and social entrepreneur specializing in health and the environment. He co-founded Seeds of Change, a biodiversity organic seed company. He authored the books, Seeds of Change; Restoring the Earth: Visionary Solutions from the Bioneers; and When Healing Becomes a Crime.

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Frank Rich Reviews the Bush Follies

Written on October 4th, 2006
The New York Times op-ed writer explains how the White House propaganda machine replaced reality with “truthiness” to lead us into Iraq.

October 4, 2006  |  In his new book, The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth from 9/11 to Katrina, Frank Rich writes, “… whatever else 9/11 was, we can see now that it was the beginning of a new national narrative — a compelling and often persuasive story that was told by the president of the United States and his administration to mobilize a shell-shocked country desperate to be led.”

According to Rich, the administration’s highest priority was not to eliminate Al Qaeda, but to consolidate its own power, and this aim called for a propaganda presidency in which reality was consistently replaced by “truthiness.”

Rich, who became a New York Times op-ed columnist in 1994 after serving for 13 years as the newspaper’s chief drama critic, talked to Terrence McNally.
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The Struggle Between Mothers and Daughters

Written on June 29th, 2006
Language guru Deborah Tannen explores the turbulent terrain of the mother-daughter relationship.

June 29, 2006  |  Daughters, do you feel that your mother is always criticizing you? Mothers, do you feel that your daughter shuts you out? Do you habitually bicker with each other, yet long for approval and understanding? In her newest book, “You’re Wearing That? Understanding Mothers and Daughters In Conversation,” linguist Deborah Tannen untangles the knots that daughters and mothers tend to get tied up in.

Tannen’s bestseller, “You Just Don’t Understand: Women and Men in Conversation,” brought gender difference in communication style to public awareness. A later book, “The Argument Culture: Stopping America’s War on Words,” explored why America seems to make everything a battle, a debate, or a war — and what that costs us as a society.

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The Mommy Wage Gap

Written on June 12th, 2006
Mothers are half as likely to be offered jobs as non-mothers — and they get paid less for doing the same work. Joan Blades and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner are out to change that.

June 12, 2006  |  There’s a lot of talk about family values in this country. Yet in most states women with children can be denied jobs or given less pay, just because they are mothers. The wage gap between mothers and non-mothers is now greater than the wage gap between women and men. In their new book, The Motherhood Manifesto: What America’s Moms Want and What to Do About It (Nation Books), Moveon.org co-founder Joan Blades and consultant and author Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner ask: Isn’t it about time that we actually started supporting families and mothers?

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