As important as the tectonic movements of 1914-17 and 1939-45, the world is undergoing a process of profound changes in its social, economic and political structures.
That the planet lives a moment of great transformations is a fact that nobody contests. With the recent collapse of old ways of doing politics in places like the United States, England, Colombia and many more, the social tsunami is expressed in a resounding “No!” to almost everything that sounds and smells of Establishment. The winds of change form a real hurricane in which the forces of intolerance, resentment, isolationism and xenophobia clash head-on with the logic of economic globalization and tolerance towards diversity.
Hopefully, without the costs of millions of human lives that defined the two major waves of readjustment of the twentieth-century world order —the two World Wars, the present readjustment of the very foundations of the various societies does not seem to be a process with easy solutions. The clash of civilizations/religions which currently takes place mostly visible in Europe only contributes to the complexity of the problem.
Like the military confrontations of the last century, the new conflict scenario will have partly its epicenter in Europe, but most likely will be marked by the return of Asia as the social and economic center of the planet. The fact that China is already the world’s leading economy is clearly an indicator in this regard.
Despite the rhetoric with which he campaigned in the United States, the so-called Pax Americana could accelerate its decline, just as Donald Trump take charge of to the White House. Beyond its strength to impose a border wall on Mexico, to dismantle NAFTA and deport millions of parents and siblings of American families, to return the American economy to the golden years of the 1950s is an impossible promise.
Not only because the industrial model of those years has been surpassed by the robotic economy of the 21st century, but also because the American economy itself has several decades oriented towards the services and integrated economy. This, in addition to the obvious competitive advantage of the cheap labor of all the so-called emerging economies.
The new economy as expressed with the Internet of Thinks
Character of a reality show, the new President of the United States may be able to build a coalition of interests with a non-exporting economic sector of his country focused on the Internet of Things economy and further foster innovation which leads to economic growth. However, confronted with the very logic of globalization that his own country has represented, his presidency needs globalization to benefit from the new economy otherwise only foresee a scenario of turbulence and instability.
2017 for Latinos
If immigrants know anything, the United States is not a country that gives anything for free. Not to them. Despite the rhetoric of hatred, all hard data shows that immigrants, especially those who came from the south, are hard-working, hard-working people. Not only have they never lived in social security and of course they do pay taxes, but most relevant, they constitute the most dynamic sector of the economy of this country.
Despite the pandora box that President Trump has opened, the United States remains a nation that was built by immigrants, where immigrants are the most productive segment and whose future will depend on their immigrants. For this reason, the battles for respect for the rights and dignity of the Latino community are fundamental for the whole country.
Even undocumented immigrants, who account for about 10 percent of the total 55 million Hispanics who live here. In addition to being parents, sisters and brothers of millions of families fully integrated into the so-called American mainstream, undocumented workers are the key workforce of various sectors of the national economy. From construction to agriculture, from construction to hospitality, millions of workers belong fully to their communities, and-in fact, as Vice President Joe Biden once said, they are already Americans.
