Effective global governance must be the goal of humanity today: Javier Solana

Effe ctive global governance must be the goal of humanity today

Humanity’s main concerns today are not so much concrete evils as they are indeterminate threats. We are not worried by visible dangers, but by vague ones that could strike when they are least expected – and against which we are insufficiently protected.

There are, of course, specific, identifiable dangers, but what worries us most about terrorism, for example, is its unpredictable nature. What is most disturbing about the economy these days is its volatility – in other words, the inability of our institutions to protect us from the possibility of extreme financial uncertainty.

These conditions of overexposure are for the most part unprecedented, raising numerous questions for which we don’t yet have the right answers. What kind of protection would be appropriate in such a world?

Not surprisingly, a contagious globalization that increases vulnerability inevitably triggers preventive and defensive strategies that are not always proportionate or reasonable.

While the old power game sought the protection of one’s own interests with no concern for the interests of others, overexposure has brought about the reciprocity of risks, the development of cooperative methods, and the sharing of information and strategies. Truly effective global governance is the strategic horizon that humanity must pursue today with all its energy.

It sounds difficult to achieve, and so it will be. But it has nothing to do with pessimism. The challenge of governing global risks is nothing less than the challenge of preventing the “end of history” – not as the placid apotheosis of liberal democracy’s global victory, but as the worst collective failure we can imagine.

I did a search on this and couldn't find it posted on the forums, so I post it here. I did note that this character Javier Solana has been discussed quite a lot on ATS, so I hope members find this piece interesting. I have only cited the commentary in part, so please refer to the link for the entire article.

If I didn't hold to a bibilical view of the future, I would contend that Solana mounts a good argument, outlining sound reasons to adopt global governnance, given the globalised problems and crises the world faces, even if some of those problems are not full-proof such as global warming, perhaps. Regardless, the world is today a complex interdependant system where risks and crises are often contagious and reciprocated. It could very well be argued that the world would be far better positioned if global government be implemented, in the current volatile environment, it would likely restore a lot of stability.

The notion of global government is no longer conspiracy theory, it is fast becoming the seeming only solution called upon by a growing number of political figures to address the world's woes and volatility - economically, environmentally, and militarily (with the increased terrorist activity and so on), among others.

Solana suggests it will be difficult to achieve global governence. But I submit that it will be an event, a very catastrophic event, such as a complete financial collapse or major environmental disaster, or some other incredible catalyst. It is this trigger that will all but demand global government be implemented urgently in response.

Yesterday EU wide governance and now WORLD governance...
They are in more hurry than I thought.

reply to post by surrealist


I didn't ever expect to hear Javier Solana's name again.
He's been pushing global governance for a long time, and look where it's gotten us. Just the level of inter-dependence the EU has achieved has set up a precarious set of economic dominoes capable of crippling the continent. And the US... the United States of America is the EU in country form, and now look at the bottom falling out.
Solana was a great diplomat. He was called a squarer of circles. He was fully capable of brokering peace treaties and mediating disputes. But, his vision of global governance is (or should be) a pipe dream, and I hope we learn our lesson long before we, as a planet, have allowed ourselves to establish such a dangerous global institution.

Unless, of course, we first learn how to co-exist, both socially, politically, and economically - and in a stable manner. But, then, as I look out my window at a world of hate, intolerance, and basic insanity...I'm not holding my breath.

With an increasing progression towards globalisation of communications, transport, trade, education, media, infrastructure, economy and many other aspects of society clearer cohesion is needed with the issues of governance and law.

At the moment the UN Sectary General is playing umpire to the boxing matches going on.
At the top of the pyramid is the Security Council that sets the direction.
Next are bodies like the G8 and G20 to sort out the implications.
At the bottom is the General Assembly to accept or reject the plan.

This is how I see global governance currently working and am supportive of any actions to inject more common sense into the decision making process. There is a lot of cultural diversity around the world causing a lot of trouble and strife. If you try an play a game with one team using the rules of basketball and the other team using the rules of football all you get is a chaotic mess.

At the moment the UN is a libertarian style of governance when the nations do what they want. This has resulted in some very positive actions, but also some very negative ones. A more effective, responsible and accountable decision making process has gradually been building up over time since the start of this global organisation. To stop everything falling apart this trend must continue.