Globalization: The Super Story

"Globalization: The Super-Story", by Thomas L. Friedman, discusses how everything is connected in today’s society. I find his organization of the global system very interesting. The balance between superpowers, supermarkets, and super-empowered individuals, shows how humanity has developed technologically and ideologically into the 21^st Century. With the advances of the internet and mass media, people have been able to find a voice to spread their thoughts. Along with technology, we now consider the idea that one person can make a difference in the world. Hundreds of years ago, people could only consider royalty of such importance. The everyday human would not feel like they were of much significance to the world. Nowadays, most people think that everyone is important and anyone can make a difference.

          The super-empowered individuals that Friedman talks about are on par with nation-states. Osama Bin Laden organized the largest terrorist attack in American history. Jody Williams won the Nobel Peace Prize by organizing an international coalition against land mines. However, most people are not on par with Nobel Prize winners or superpowers. Still, we like to think that everyone makes a difference in their own way. Whether it’s helping society progress or actually hindering progress, every person has the potential to make the world a radically different place. I like to think that my pursuit of an education towards computer science will help me be able to change the way computers work and innovate our technology so that it may become more useful or more relevant in the future. On a different note, I am also a musician and a writer because I enjoy communicating my feelings into words and sounds that other people can relate to. I feel that this other contribution towards the arts is just as important as advancing our technology.

          The concept of super-empowered individuals is what really caught my interest in this reading. Although I understand that the main point is about globalization, and I comprehend the impact that everything has upon everything else, I feel like sometimes we forget that we are all connected into the grand scheme of life. Every day that we spend, every moment that we live, every decision that we make: it all matters.