(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
Therefore, Ny Tid wants to help put the debate about the global and the national higher on the agenda. Maybe the media does not need more foreign material, maybe the point is that the distinction between foreign and domestic material must be rejected in more and more cases. The debate may include how the Storting and Norwegian politicians can formulate a policy that takes on the globalization of the economy. The series will summarize and continue on some of the exchanges Ny Tid has had on the debate pages in recent months. But we will also make new, constructive proposals for a globalized world in the 21st century. In search of a 3rd way.
Here are some of the questions that help define the tension between national and global perspectives of the world today:
■ Full National Sovereignty vs. Stronger Global Organizations: Do nation states have to give up some of their sovereignty to achieve well-functioning global organizations, and is this a prerequisite for climate agreements, poverty reduction, stability and less danger of crises, war and terror? There can be many intermediate solutions between the nation states and the creation of a world government.
■ National self-determination vs. humanitarian interventions: Can it be appropriate for the world community to intervene in a state, and if so, how serious must state abuses against its own population be? why has the UN and the world community not been able to do more towards Darfur and Burma?
■ Assimilation vs. inclusion: Is it true that the outer right and left have found each other in the fear of foreign labor? Are it the immigrants who want to integrate into the national culture, or are it more national states that should be included in the global common culture?
■ Alone walk vs. Collaboration: Are poor countries strongest when everyone is negotiating together (multilateral), as in the WTO, or when, for example, Botswana is negotiating alone against the United States (bilaterally)?
■ Trade vs. labor rights: Is ethical trade and voluntary corporate social responsibility the solution, or does it work against its purpose? Is the WTO or the UN the best agency for enforcing workers' rights?
In the coming weeks, here in Ny Tid you will be able to read texts by leading voices in the global debate, and they sometimes disagree: This week you can read Professor Joseph Stiglitz's concrete proposals for democratization of globalization, a text that starts on page 36.
We will also link to current issues in Norwegian politics, and challenge Norwegian politicians. And we would like your views, pro or contra the national and the global. Send your input to debatt@nytid.no.
