In contemporary times, detractors of globalisation have fervently criticized the phenomenon of widening the rich and poor gap between individuals and even countries and demand for government intervention. It is undeniable that this disparity can lead to many social problems, however, to focus on this divide only and neglect others would not be a wise choice. History has shown us the dire consequences of racial and religious segregation, the negative impact of the divide between science and religion on mankind progress and well as ideology difference. To not address them would hinder the progress of not only one country but the world as a whole.
It has been frequently argued by critics of globalisation that it has brought about the widening income gap between the haves and the have nots which can lead to contention and social unrest. While the rich can continue to expand their wealth as they can have easy access to resources and technology advancement, the poor and the unskilled seem to lose out. As they do not have the skills required in the newly emerging industries, it is highly likely that these people would be retrenched and replaced by technology. This would lead to an increase in unemployment rate of the country. Being unemployed, people have high probability to lose their self-esteem and suffer from stress as well, which would lead to dissatisfaction and worsening health. According to research as well as confirmed by renown figures like Seneca, Karl Marx through the theory of relative deprivation posits that it harms people psychologically to see that other people have more than them. This would cause a decline in health which would place a huge burden on the country on healthcare cost. Linking unemployment to decline in healthcare? The discussion is rushed. Besides, as lower-income earners are not satisfied with their lives, dissension and protests are likely to occur. We would cannot forget the images of burning cars and broken window in Paris when retrenched workers went on strike to demand for change in policies which can bring them jobs. Taking a more extreme case into account, poor people having no means to earn a living would desperately join terrorist groups where they are at least guaranteed a life with food and shelter. Thus, it is possible to this gap between rich and poor lead to many social problems, just like Robert Wade has stated that income divergence helps to explain other kind of polarization taking place in the world system, between a zone of peace and a zone of turmoil. To prevent such turmoil to occur, the government should definitely address this rich and poor gap to ensure social stability.
However, it is not to say that governments all over the world should spend all the money and resources to tackle this divide alone. In the end, we have to question ourselves whether this rich and poor gap only brings about negative impacts that requires our full attention. Studies have shown by many psychologists that inequality can help serve to motivate people to work harder. A 1990-2010 study of golfers found that they performed best in tournaments where the spread in size and prize money is widest. This is explained as inequality may act on human psyche to elicit hard work and high achievement, which will lead to progress. Since this problem is not always harmful and there are other divides that need our concern as well, it is evident that rich and poor gap is not the only one issue that worth addressing. Quite a far fetched example.
One of the separations that have been plaguing world peace and security is racial segregation. As each race has different cultures and practices that are long-engraved throughout many generations, it is hard for cultures to mix well with one another and accept differences. The wall between different races if not handled well would possibly lead to conflicts whose outcomes are beyond our imagination. In many of our memories nowadays remain the tragic images of million of Jews perishing in the holocaust or dying in pain due to the cruelty of the Nazis who believed in the superiority of Aryan race over others. The death of 800 thousand people in the genocide of the Tutsis by the Hutus in Rwanda is not a small number that should be neglected. In our very own multicultural Singapore society, the racial riots and the Maria Hertogh incident are evidence that racial segregation is present and prevalent in our life. The loss of lives, national insecurity and social instability is so dear a cost of such divide when it is neglected and not taken into consideration. It may be argued that this divide is declining in the globalised world, where there is an increase in integration and influx of information and cultures from different countries. However, it may not be the case. There has developed a sense of xenophobia and discomfort of the locals towards immigrants. This has led to mistreatment towards immigrants as well as impede economic growth as it hinders the flows of talent. Such mentality exists in many corners of the world, from Singapore to Germany where recently German Chancellor Angela Merkel has declared that multiculturalism has failed, and the country would tighten its immigration policies. We can see racial segregation is more subtle in today’s world, however, its impact is still considerable. As Samuel Huntington has claims in his theory of clash of civilizations that the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great division among mankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. As the cultural divide is so significant, to choose to ignore them and focus only on rich and poor gap would be too myopic and thus, impede the progress of the country.
Similar to racial segregation, we also have to take into consideration the divide between religions which may lead to riots and conflicts as well. Different sets of values and regulations of each religion can cause great anger among devout followers of such religions if they find their religions are insulted or oppressed. The conflict between the Catholics and Protestants arising from the disparity in Biblical explanations of these two denominations or the fundamentalism which results in terrorist acts due to extremist beliefs can be easily observed in our world. These are cases that have lucidly shown us the divide between religions can lead to negative impacts as well, and should be address along with rich poor gap and racial segregation rather than being left out.
When it comes to religion, there is another divide that worth our attention. Science and religions have long been known for their conflicts on many matters, from the origin of life, who created the Earth and human beings to how religion regards issues at different perspectives and angles from science like the case of homosexuality and euthanasia. Although it is undeniable that religions have their own rights to believe in their ways, religious beliefs have often impeded the progress of science. We would not forget the horrendous Dark Age in Europe or how religions strongly rejected the theory of heliocentricism which was gradually proven to be true. As many plausible theories proposed by scientists are rejected by religions, intellectual advancement of mankind is hindered. Even nowadays, religions also strongly disapprove the research of cloning and genetic engineering. It is not to say that such research does not have negative implications like what religions claim, however, such research if successful can help save many lives by producing organs for transplantation or to cure hereditary diseases by genetic studies. I am not saying that these religions are wrong, but we need to find a consensus between science and religions in order for science to progress, and thus allow mankind to progress. Hence, as the divide between science and religions can slow down our development, it would be fallacious to say such divide is not worth addressing.
In conclusion, it is inevitable that rich and poor gap can do harm to the society and thus requires our attention. Nevertheless, there are other segregations in our society that needs consideration as well. It should not be necessarily crucial for us to decide on which one should be our priority, all divides should be addressed and taken care of carefully in order to ensure social stability and the progress of mankind.
Good work on this essay! Its quite challenging and you attempted it very well. I believe some of my VJC students would be dumbstruck reading this.
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