Neo-Colonialism

There are two concepts that are difficult for me to wrap my mind around

1) Global Hegemony

According to our class discussion, the field of International Affairs usually claims that a bipolar world is the most stable. Political Geographers typically scoff this and say that having one global leader (a unipolar world) is the way in which we maximize peace. Based on the Cold War, I would agree. Despite some erroneous claims that this was our greatest time of peace, many proxy wars took place that were hidden from public view, worsening the situation by the fact that there was no attention from media.

Also discussed was (as an example) the idea of bombing North Korea to prove our point in order to create peace. I disagree with this. It's hard to really authenticate my reasoning, but I believe that this is a very dangerous game. Yes, it will bring about the greatest amount of peace, so if you are going for the well-being of many, then this is the heroic act. This is not to say that Korea won't bomb back in revenge or allies won't feel the pain. Even if North and South Korea harbor political alienation, the people don't. They are all "Korean" by history, and they still feel the same today. It is only the elite who rule with such rash decision-making. By bombing them, you are ensuring that once they recover, their retaliation will come directly to you. It is hard to put oneself in such direct risk. I don't believe that bombing them ensures our safety. Perhaps it's beneficial with some countries but definitely not all...

2)Modernization Theory: the idea that we work hard and sacrifice now for future generations

Basically, this validates concepts like child labor, horrible working conditions, and bad pay. There is nothing on earth that makes me feel worse for the fact that I agree with this. I don't believe this is the way things have to be. More developed countries could provide opportunities to less developed countries in helping their economies grow, but this will never happen on a large scale. Hopefully, it can happen with some to prevent those few countries from going through the awful conditions China and SE Asia are now undergoing, but I know that this is extremely unlikely to work even if there was a shot. As media spreads, this also makes it harder for governments to stand their ground. This is the scene in Brazil as internet technology allows for more organized rioting and coerces the government into paying off the poor.

I think that the Modernization Theory works, but it doesn't mean I have to like it.