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The Consequences of an Increasingly Globalized World Essay

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Throughout the twentieth century, and continuing today, the process of globalisation has dramatically changed the context in which nation-states operate and, in turn, the central governments’ ability to govern in a truly democratic manner. With this in mind, this essay will address the question of whether the federal principle of governance is applicable to all or only certain states. It will argue that as the forces of globalisation continue to operate, the federal principle will gradually become the most attractive option for all democratic states as they contend with its consequences. These include the growth of ethnic diversification, the rise of ‘personality politics’, the centralization of power in the face of ‘asymmetric warfare’ …show more content…

Perhaps the most sociably notable aspect of the globalised world is the increasingly diversified ethnic makeup of nation-states. Whereas in the past states were typically centred around one majority ethnicity, today’s world instead requires us to address the needs of many different cultures within a single country, a challenge best addressed by the federal principle. As the ability for international travel has increased in the last half century, the attractiveness of higher wages and a better standard of living has drawn many away from their nations of birth , a process aided by the need for labour in many of the wealthier, particularly western, nations. This has created large minority populations, who are also often centralized to specific locations, which, due to the continuing dominance of the majority ethnic group in national government, remain poorly represented. This is an issue addressed by the federal principle as the decentralization of power allows for greater participation by minority groups and, in areas where they form the majority, for them to hold far more autonomy than is possible in other systems.

In modern politics, especially that of the United States, the rise of ‘personality politics’ has seen a decline in the experience of national leaders at the state level resulting in leaders less

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