Mitigating the Power of Place

4/27/2013

In the preface, de Blij identified the "twin" themes/theses/messages of the book as "the power of place" and how it (the power of place) "can be mitigated". He's spent the majority of the previous nine chapters explaining the power of place with just a little attention to his second theme. I think he's done a good job making a convincing argument that "place" is indeed powerful. It's hard to imagine anyone reading those chapters and not being persuaded. Where one is born is likely the most significant factor in one's future and one's world view.
Now, in chapter 10, he turns his attention almost exclusively to his second theme. What do you think? Are you persuaded? How does he support his positions? What are the concrete details, and when does he venture into speculation?
This is the last time you'll use this forum this year as your virtual study group. Make it work, get engaged, and don't wait until the last minute!

30 Comments

Kyana W

4/27/2013 11:58:30 am

I keep getting stuck on this sentence in the first paragraph. "Religious leaders would do well to consider the divine potential of pronouncements that assert their beliefs over others." Then he makes the point that religious convergence should be the hope of all believers. I don't understand how that sentence helps his point at all, what am I missing?

Kyana W

4/27/2013 12:08:30 pm

actually its the second paragraph, sorry.

Sam Molina

4/27/2013 12:26:36 pm

I'm thinking that the first sentence, about religious leaders and their pronouncements, is part of De Blij's point that religious fanaticism is closing the minds of young children to being exposed to different religions. This can then cause difference between different people and, on a larger scale, communities and countries, which will affect globalization negatively. This is where religious convergence comes in, because if convergence is the hope for all believers, then globalization will proceed rather than be affected for all the religious devotion in the world.

Bingham

4/27/2013 11:46:16 pm

He's talking about how very powerful religion is, how much it can drive human motivation. As long as religious leaders focus on the differences between religions, putting conversion of people ahead of the actual teachings of the religion, the power of place will damage people's potential as they argue over differences rather than being aware of what they have in common. For example, the golden rule appears in almost every religion's principles. Now if everyone took a minute to actually practice that idea that religions agree upon, wouldn't place be less powerful? Wouldn't the world be a better place pretty fast?

Bingham

4/27/2013 11:49:16 pm

My comment above was for Kyana's question. Sam, you are right on track.

Kyana W

4/28/2013 04:09:43 am

Thanks guys

Sam Molina

4/27/2013 12:41:45 pm

I don't fully understand why the core had less approval for globalization than the periphery (first sentence, pg. 236). De Blij makes it clear that the periphery has more approval because it gains more benefits than drawbacks from globalization, is that the opposite for the core?

Kyana W

4/28/2013 04:16:24 am

I think De Blij is saying that the periphery supports globalization because locals view it as a way out. From the core's point of view it has disadvantages like losing jobs which brings the level od support form the core down.(My rework of that sentence, hope it helps)

Bingham

4/28/2013 09:58:31 am

No, I think it's an issue of perception really. Remember, not everyone in the core benefits from globalization, and there are many who dislike it on social and moral grounds...not to mention some old fashioned fear of the "other".

Bingham

4/27/2013 11:51:43 pm

I'd like to see some posts about how people are breaking down this chapter. Share your study process. How are you reorganizing the information?

Kyana W

4/28/2013 04:17:44 am

This was another chapter where I read the last section(page) first.

Emma Dorfman

4/28/2013 10:49:31 am

I noticed for this chapter that the sections tend to overlap each other when it comes to conceptual ideas. For example, immigration is spread out over about three chapters. What I did was I made sections for all the ideas he talks about: immigration, inequities between the core and periphery, cultural convergence, corruption, and risk. Then I wrote down the most important concrete details in outline form.

Bingham

4/29/2013 10:08:22 pm

Thanks Emma!

Emily Soice

4/30/2013 08:04:54 am

I did the same too. However, in every chapter (and especially this one) I took the time to first find all the words I didn't know before I even started to read. On all of the tests, the words he asks us to define have been on my sheet!

Lillian Evans

5/2/2013 02:43:31 pm

I always read through the chapter and as I am reading I take notes for each section in a word document. I define all the words and take down key sentences since highlighting doesn't help me. Then when I am ready to review for the test I have a typed up review sheet.

Anna Howard

4/28/2013 12:30:58 pm

Okay, so I'm foggy on what "regulatory control and cultural inertia" are. Can someone explain?

Claire Metusalem

4/29/2013 09:35:07 am

Anna,

I also looked this up and this is what I found for regulatory control: "That level in the functional decomposition of a large-scale control system which interfaces with the plant to implement the decisions of the optimizing controller inputted in the form of set points, desired trajectories, or targets. Also known as direct control function," and this for cultural inertia: "Cultural inertia is the tendency for a group of people to cling to traditions and ways of thinking that have outlived their usefulness even when better ways are presented."

Andrew Han

4/29/2013 09:39:51 am

On pg 243 de Blij writes that the United States of America paid 150 billion dollars the help sustain source countries economies(last paragraph on the page) but was this payment to lower immigration rates or not?

Kate Ham

4/29/2013 01:44:45 pm

pretty sure he is talking about the money that the immigrants make in America. For example people that work in America may send their money back to their family at their homeland, which in turn improves the source-country's economy.

Emily Soice

4/30/2013 08:07:55 am

Yes that was my understanding also. He talked about that before in an earlier chapter

Abraham Hausman-Weiss

4/29/2013 11:04:38 am

I think I understand what de Blij means in this statement, but I'm not completely sure. "If the world is to avoid a repeat of the catastrophes of the twentieth century, it will be becausye international, interregional, and intercultural linkages make global conflict over local issues purposeless and futile. Mobals are crucial in the dispersal of the seeds of understanding." The first sentence, is a little blurry to me and I don't understand what is meant by the seeds of understanding, but I think he's basically again proposing that immigration is much needed.

Kate Ham

4/29/2013 01:51:25 pm

this is super important. he is mainly referring to the people that died and the money and resources wasted on the world wars and the cold war with occupying territories that powerful countries had little business with. However, with mobals entering these countries, the core will be geographically educated and understand the problems of locals, their culture, etc. This understanding will hopefully lead to true globalization of the whole world by helping countries in the periphery

Kate Ham

4/29/2013 01:57:17 pm

A studying tip that i used and might work for you is arranging de Blij's points, by having a column for the key issues mentioned and his proposed solutions and the ones now that are not effective.
Try and just skim the preface and first chapter quickly and review some key concepts that tie together with the end. For example, although it is not directly mentioned,he implies the ultimate power the state has over locals and the "race against time." For a full understanding i suggest checking it out

Bingham

4/29/2013 10:09:24 pm

That's brilliant!

Emily Soice

4/30/2013 08:17:20 am

What does de Blij mean by "thousand-year events" in Place and Nature?

Emma Lyon

4/30/2013 11:58:53 am

Emily,
I think DeBlij is talking about how people place these environmental averages on these natural hazards and events. However, the power of nature is truly unpredictable and can happen(in any form) at any time. DeBlij is trying to say that the environmental averages like a "thousand year event" (which is an event that is said to occur every thousand years) are not what people should rely on. Overall, the power of nature is too unpredictable to place a time limit on.

Kate Ham

4/30/2013 12:02:57 pm

can someone help explain to me on page250 the political situation of Kosovo

Claire Metusalem

5/1/2013 09:41:22 am

Kate,

Kosovo has had territorial disputes with the Serbian government, and I think that their position today is still undecided. And they do all of this marginal defining to try and solve the issue.

Claire Metusalem

5/1/2013 09:45:40 am

In this chapter De Blij talks about power of nature vs. the power of place. He states that the "immediate and increasingly urgent concern is the power of nature over the fortunes of populated space..." (pg.251) and that in the core, they need to be prepared for the disasters to come. Yet when he talks about the periphery, he says that "it continues to be a matter of post-emergency assistance." I was wondering if someone could possibly clear this up for me?

Sam Molina

5/1/2013 10:48:05 am

Hey Claire,
What I believe De Blij is saying is that the core needs to and can be prepared for disasters to come because they have the resources to do so beforehand. However, the periphery stays as a matter of post-emergency assistance because they lack vital resources to prepare against disasters, like technologies to warn them about coming disaster or stockpiling food and medical supplies to use during or after it. The only real assistance the periphery might get, therefore, is aid from other countries after the storm has passed, the "post-emergency assistance" De Blij talks about.

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Mitigating the Power of Place

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