in the right direction, that history constantly begets progress, and that,
in the final analysis, the world could be much worse off than it is.
Consider, first, the expansion of new technologies. Anyone can see
that life today is far easier than it was in the past. Martin Wolf, chief
economic commentator of theFinancial Times, remarks that contrary
to the nightmare described by George Orwell in his novel 1984 ,
“modern computer and telecommunications technology liberates
rather than imprisons.”^4 The transfer of data from one corner of the
planet to another is not only less and less costly, but has also become
practically instantaneous. By increasing the mobility of goods,
services, and capital – as well as that of ideas and fashions – the
communications revolution has helped to bring peoples closer together,
and give concrete meaning to the trope of the “global village” coined
by Marshall McLuhan in the 1960s.
The technical changes of the past twenty years have spawned a host
of new opportunities. Above all, they have promoted economic
growth across the globe as recent innovations have made it possible to
draw greater benefit from the comparative advantages that each
country derives from its factors of production.^5 In other words, the
tremendous progress achieved in the fields of electronics, computers,
and transportation has helped to strengthen the competitiveness of
states and firms, and to enhance the efficiency of the international
division of labor. Consumers are unquestionably the major benefi-
ciaries of the resulting transformation of the global system of pro-
duction, for they now have access to goods and services of a higher
quality and at a lower price than ever before.
The technological progress witnessed over the past generation has
contributed immensely to the maintenance of a healthy international
economy. Between 1970 and 2002, world production grew at an
average yearly rate of 3–4 percent, and this trend is on the upswing.^6
During the same period, the international exchange of goods and
services expanded at even higher rates, with a 6 percent annual
average increase.^7 Most experts agree that this sustained growth in
(^4) Ibid., p. 120.
(^5) World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization,A Fair
Globalization: Creating Opportunities for All, Geneva, International Labour
Office, 2004, p. 27, paragraph 140.
(^6) IMF,Annual Report 2003, Washington, DC, IMF, 2003, p. 8, Figure 1.1.
(^7) Ibid.
58 Left and Right in Global Politics