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undereducated； and underserved； it will be like a rocket that takes off but quickly
falls back to earth for lack of sustained thrust。
The Congress Party got the message； which was why as soon as it took office it chose
as its prime minister not some antiglobalizer but Manmohan Singh； the former Indian
finance minister； who in 1991 first opened the Indian economy to globalization；
placing an emphasis on exports and trade and reform wholesale。 And Singh； in turn；
pledged himself to vastly increase government investments in rural infrastructure
and to bring more reform retail to rural government。
How can outsiders collaborate in this process？ I think； first and foremost； they can
redefine the meaning of global populism。 If populists really want to help the rural
poor； the way to do it is not by burning down McDonald's and shutting down the IMF
and trying to put up protectionist barriers that will unflatten the world。 That will
help the rural poor not one iota。 It has to be by refocusing the energies of the global
populist movement on how to improve local government； infrastructure； and education
in places like rural India and China； so the populations there can acquire the tools
to collaborate and participate in the flat world。 Theglobal populist movement； better
known as the antiglobalization movement； has a great deal of energy； but up to now
it has been too divided and confused to effectively help the poor in any meaningful
or sustained manner。 It needs a policy lobotomy。 The world's poor do not resent the
rich anywhere nearly as much as the left…wing parties in the developed world imagine。
What they resent is not having any pathway to get rich and to join the flat world
and cross that line into the middle class that Jerry Yang spoke about。
Let's pause for a minute here and trace how the antiglobalization movement lost touch
with the true aspirations of the world's poor。 The antiglobalization movement emerged
at the World Trade Organization conference in Seattle in 1999 and then spread around
the world in subsequent years； usually gathering to attack meetings of the World Bank；
the IMF； and the G…8 industrialized nations。 From its origins； the movement that
emerged in Seattle was a primarily Western…driven phenome385
non； which was why you saw so few people of color in the crowds。 It was driven by
five disparate forces。 One was upper…middle…class American liberal guilt at the
incredible wealth and power that America had amassed in the wake of the fall of the
Berlin Wall and the dot…com boom。 At the peak of the stock market boom；lots of pampered
American college kids； wearing their branded clothing； began to get interested in
sweatshops as a way of expiating their guilt。 The second force driving it was a
rear…guard push by the Old Left…socialists； anarchists； and Trotskyites…in alliance
with protectionist trade unions。 Their strategy was to piggyback on rising concerns
about globalization to bring back some form of socialism； even though these ideas
had been rejected as bankrupt by the very people in the former Soviet Empire and China
who had lived under them longest。 （Now you know why there was no antiglobalization
movement tospeak of in Russia； China； or Eastern Europe。） These Old Left forces wanted
to spark a debate about whether we globalize。 They claimed to speak in the name of
the Third World poor； but the bankrupt economic policies they advocated made them；
in my view； the Coalition to Keep Poor People Poor。 The third force was a more amorphous
group。 It was made up of many people who gave passive support to the antiglobalization
movement from many countries； because they saw in it some kind of protest against
the speed at which the old world was disappearing and becoming flat。
The fourth force driving the movement； which was particularly strong in Europe and
in the Islamic world； was anti…Americanism。 The disparity between American economic
and political power and everybody else's had grown so wide after the fall of the Soviet
Empire that America began to…or was perceived to…touch people's lives around the
planet； directly or indirectly； more than their own governments did。 As people around
the world began to intuit this； a movement emerged； which Seattle both reflected and
helped to catalyze； whereby people said； in effect； 〃If America is now touching my
life directly or indirectly more than my own government； then I want to have a vote
in America's power。〃 At the time of Seattle； the 〃touching〃 that people were most
concerned with was from American economic and cultural power； and therefore the demand
for a vote tended to focus around economic rule…making in386
stitutions like the World Trade Organization。 America in the 1990s； under President
Clinton； was perceived as a big dumb dragon； pushing people around in the economic
and cultural spheres； knowingly and unknowingly。 We were Puff the Magic Dragon； and
people wanted a vote in what we were puffing。
Then came 9/11。 And America transformed itself from Puff the Magic Dragon； touching
people around the world economically and culturally； into Godzilla with an arrow in
his shoulder； spitting fire and tossing around his tail wildly； touching people's
lives in military and security terms； not just economic and cultural ones。 As that
happened； people in the world began to say； 〃Now we really want a vote in how America
wields its power〃…and in many ways the whole Iraq war debate was a surrogate debate
about that。
Finally； the fifth force in this movement was a coalition of very serious；
well…meaning； and constructive groups…from environmentalists to trade activists to
NGOs concerned with governance…who became part of the populist antiglobalization
movement in the 1990s in the hopes that they could catalyze a global discussion about
how we globalize。 I had a lot of respect and sympathy for this latter group。 But in
the end they got drowned out by the whether…we…globalize crowd； which began to turn
the movement more violent at the July 2001 Genoa G…8 summit； when an antiglobalization
protester was killed while attacking an Italian police jeep with a fire extinguisher。
The combination of the triple convergence； the violence at Genoa； 9/11； and tighter
security measures fractured the antiglobalization movement。 The more serious
how…we…globalize groups did not want to be in the same trench with anarchists out
to provoke a public clash with police； and after 9/11； many American labor groups
did not want to be associated with a movement that appeared to be taken over by
anti…American elements。 This became even more pronounced when in late September 2001；
three weeks after 9/11； antiglobalization leaders attempted a rerun of Genoa in the
streets of Washington； to protest the IMF and World Bank meetings there。 After 9/11；
though； the IMF and World Bank canceled their meetings； and many American protesters
shied away。 Those who did turn up in the streets of Washington turned the event into
a march against
the imminent American invasion of Afghanistan to remove Osama bin Laden and al…Qaeda。
At the same t