Could the world be that flat? Thomas L Friedman put out his book in 2005 (1st Edition) and I have had it on my wish list for a while. I recently got round to reading it and the one thing I could not help but wonder, "how this guy as a Journalist got to know so many influential people."
When you read this book the first thing that strikes you is that Mr Friedman is in conversation with very influential people. I can't hep but wish that he knew me and I him.
That aside, the book is....well it is good. I know for people who have been monitoring the global trends and movements, nothing that Mr Friedman says would be new to them. (So this is not or you)
The book touches on some very real issues and goings on in the world. The bit about the decline of the Berlin wall.....I wasn't really taken by it, but when it came to India, China and the impact they have had since plugging in. Now things get very interesting.
Mr Friedman also places great emphasis on the impact of Technology on our lives. It got me thinking about when it was I actually got my first email address. Then it struck me that since 1998, (which is when I got my Yahoo address), my world has gone through tremendous change or a paradigm shift if you like. I can't remember the last time I wrote a letter, apart from cover letters to prospctive employers ofcourse.
I then went on to look at my CD collection, and establish whether I have got any sentimental attachment you know the kind of feelings people have about their vinyl records. I was surprised that I felt absolutely no attachment to this discs and all of a sudden I yearned for an iPod. Mmhh!!!
Either the arguement was well presented in the book or Mr Friedman is a very skillful marketer and this is excellent product placement. (I prefer to think it is the former)
The impact of technology also leads swiftly into the rise of the individual and the reduced emphasis and reliance on the state. My understanding is that the responsibility of the State and government to the individual is undergoing a transformation and at the end of it, the taxation with representation will have a new impetus to it.
I think the moral to the story in this book is that starting yesterday, people will have to work smarter and not harder. No matter how hard you work, somewhere in India or China about 1000 people will be doing the same thing as you but working even harder. They have won the numbers game hands down
Aluta continua.........
1 comment:
I've been holding back comment on Mr. Friedman's book ("...Flat") and opinions on globalization but as it turns out, people think of him in the same way I do; he's full of baloney. Alright, maybe not but he certainly gives some of us pause.
This is the one time that you can fairly accuse me of pointing to an analysts opinion - which you like to do - instead of giving my own (although I've been suspicious of Mr.Friedman's generalizations since I saw him on "Charlie Rose").
If you pay attention to his conclusion-drawing, it's like someone who is fascinated by some new theory (say, Chaos Theory) and the fact that it seems applicable to most aspects of life, and then goes on to make the case that it actually does apply to everything and that its the way to go.
By that, I don't mean that what he says is wrong, or that he doesn't give arguments, but listening to the one-hour interview on "Charlie Rose" - which isn't segmented by advertisements - I was waiting to be convinced because the interview was actually intriguing and informative. I wasn't.
There seemed to be unexplainable leaps in logic and mass generalization for which Charlie did not press on.
Mr. Friedman needs to flesh out his thesis a little bit in order to gain credibility; at least for people who are serious about this stuff.
Incidentally, I posted a blog which was semi-inspired by the issues in the book(or more specifically, by his interview those many years ago...)
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