Week 10 Post Class Blog

Global Economy and Economic Autonomy

 

Globalization has truly helped today’s corporations develop into their roles as private actors on an international scale.  Professor Jackson is quick to point out in his lecture, though, that corporations are dependent on states for their legal existence, while states are in no way reliant on corporations for legitimacy.  However, in the same way that some “weaker” states may be seen to be reliant on the wealth and power of transnational criminal organizations, global economic institutions can sometimes appear to “usurp” the role of the state, especially in matters concerning the future possibilities of said corporation.
 

The collision of the worlds of economics/commerce and public authority is the realm in which much of today’s questions regarding public and private authority come to rest.  Keeping global corporations accountable requires a recognized global authority.  Unfortunately, this authority is severely lacking (the case could be argued that it doesn’t truly exist at all).  As a result, corporations that find themselves operating in the top left corner of our two by two (impermeable boundaries and autonomy) alongside state actors will find themselves in violent conflict over who has authority, be it public or private, to implement regulations and determine success.  The general weakening of commercial boundaries as corporations seek more transnational commerce distinguishes a palpable absence of a single global public authority to regulate and resolve ambiguities between states and corporations.  The result is messy.  Unfortunately, because there is no current global authority to fulfill this role, the mess continues, sometimes working itself out and other times not so much.


I used to think of the state as actually being an economic actor buying and selling services.  Thanks to this week’s discussion and lecture, it is now clear to me that that is not the case.  The biggest argument in swaying me was the relationship of citizens and states vs customers and private transactions.  Long standing relationships between customers and corporations is not a contracted connection; I can shop at Walmart once and decide Target is infinitely better and never again return to make a purchase at Walmart.  On the other hand, as a citizen of a state, I have contracted to abide by rules and contribute to a greater purpose until such a time as I may transfer my citizenship.  I believe this to be key in considering the public vs private authority dilemma of globalized corporations.