Apples and Oranges

Reading Wolf and Stiglitz there are clearly both overt and underlying disagreements there. However they address their subjects from such different points that it is sometimes difficult for me to see them in conversation. They are almost talking past each other. They have fundamentally different approaches to evidence and different perspectives, not necessarily on the underlying idea of globalization, but rather what needs to be argued.

Evidence:

Wolf- talkes about globalization versus what as and what would be without/with less globalization

Stiglitz- criticizes globalization versus what was promised by its proponents and his vision of what the world should be.

The Invisible Hand:

In some ways their differences can be seen clearly in their statements on the invisible hand.

Wolf: "Adam Smith's metaphor of the invisible hand remains as illuminating as ever. Self- interest, co-ordinated though the market, motivates people to invent, produce and sell a vast array of goods, services, and assets." (p. 45)

Stiglitz: "My research on the economics of information showed that whenever information is imperfect, in particular when there are information asymmetries -- where some individuals know something that others do not (in other words always)-- the reason the invisible hand seems invisible is that it is not there." (p. xiv)

In a way Wolf and Stiglitz are both a debate and a meeting of the minds. Wolf is defending globalization from what seems to be an unrealistic enemy, but Stiglitz in many ways assumes the basics of Wolf's argument to be true. He is arguing for fixing globalization- doing it better- not getting rid of it altogether. He assumes globalization is going to and should (if done well) happen.Wolf is not arguing against Stiglitz- he put that away early on in the book.