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If you are in business, any type of business, this is the most important book you will read this decade.If you are not in business, but you live on planet earth, this is the most important book you will read this decade.If you are a college student, and you will soon be choosing your career path, this is the most important book you will read this decade.If you are a high school student, and you can't imagine reading a book that is not assigned to you by a teacher, trust me when I tell you that this is the most important book you will read this decade.Bottom line is this. It is that important. This book is different.
As I write this on an Apple computer that is designed in California, assembled in China, and upload the review to a server that was built in Taiwan, ordered via phone from a call center that is based in India, and that was programmed by a software designer in Poland, I can't help but wonder how America will continue to compete if more people do not face up to the fact that we have to change our model completely. Read the book for what it is; a great essay on what we as a society must do to succeed and prosper in the next fifty years. You really need to read The World is Flat to gain a through understanding as to how globalization is changing everything, and America is in trouble if it does not get its act together.
This book is a lot more fact than opinion, and the fact that Friedman wrote it should not force you to read it, or force you to ignore it. Not just our business model, but also the model in which we interact with the rest of the world; socially, academically, commercially, and politically. There is no question that author Thomas Friedman is a writer with a liberal lean, and many people do not read him because of his politically views.
If you only read one book in your lifetime (and you know who you are), take the time to read this book. (Can you tell that I liked it).
This was another great purchase from Amazon. I was pleased with the whole process of ordering and received it in a timely manner.
In my own case, when I moved to this small burg thirty-five years ago, banks, schools, factories, offices were hiring bright young middle-class folks--so much so that it was a race for me just to locate an apartment. Read this book. Now, the prison is not hiring. Most of our shops are vacant and even condemned.
Our local business saint, who seemed to own a vault full of high denomination currency, lobbied hard to open the market to China declaring every single one of the kabillions of residents there would be our customer. He also argues that joblessness creates job growth (p.264). jobs, benefits, and unions, and attempting to destroy Social Security. To reiterate: this book is very important. But, perhaps 90% of the foreign call centers are owned by Americans. Friedman has used a lot of ink.
I am giving it a three star because of its importance, rather than the zero it deserves. Maybe the jobs were not highly paid, but they were available, they had medical insurance, and perhaps even a pitiful pension plan. He was very powerful. And, then Frank Zappa's "Call Any Vegetable," to thank the political pawns who made the new economy a reality. Knowitall prompted me to read this book because it is a rock upon the waters and often cited as gospel in the new colonialism scheme of things. College graduates apparently flee to undisclosed destinations. Amazingly, he suggests health care for all (p.372) when the flat world is diametrically opposed to this concept. And your boss won't look like your old one.
And, Friedman was so happy teenagers could download so many songs on their little musical devices for such a low cost. He also recommended several other "bestsellers" which I, after thirty-five years in the book business, had never heard of and never had anyone ask me for. (I do not mean Americans like you and me, but Americans who are really, really rich). There's no longer a ladder, and you may never get to retire." Welcome to the flat world. There had been factories that produced nails, Christmas lights, pianos, foundry products, boilers, baskets, steel girders, toys,and even skate boards, among other things.
The May 25, 2009 cover of "Time" states "Throw away the briefcase" you're not going to the office. Yes, our beloved author has prophecized an era of collaboration (p.8) expedited by the beauty of outsourcing (p.14) when our professionals and grunts are replaced by cheaper labor that international poverty can readily produce. But, put your brain in your head first. The book was highly recommended by a psychobabbling Indiana Wesleyan professor who spoke at Rotary. You can kiss your benefits goodbye too. Perhaps the first download should be "Highway to Hell" by ACDC in honor of the the big financial interest as thanks for destroying paying U.S.
Then, President Reagan announced the One World Economy. The author argues that Wal-Mart helps the poor by reducing its employees' health care, after the company helped destroy small American businesses with its predatory practices (p.250). The author seems to be the jolly sort of well-dressed individual who would be merrily playing the banjo as your pals with the cattle prods herd you off to the pig wagons (We do not have boxcars anymore). Of course, you know the rest.
I almost wanted to jump for joy. I could not believe the President of the United States would push the gleeful race to the bottom, but it worked, taking away paying U.S. jobs and benefits, destroying unions, and it will get worse. 140), for peanuts I might add. If you did not enjoy the book, you might enjoy "Flat Broke in the Free Market" by Jon Jeter, "The Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein, "Armed Madhouse" by Greg Palast, or "Ronald Reagan: The man who sold the world and the betrayal of Main Street" by William Kelinknecht.
But, he does admit ".the world is changing in profound and unsettling ways (p.45)." The offshore worker is willing to put in twelve hours a day (p. However, Dr. Luckily, we still have plenty of wars. As if working with our state sponsored local diploma mill, Friedman wishes to place every citizen in a campus (p.374), as degrees for no jobs are being cranked out. Friedman holds the world no longer has borders and, presuming he is correct, and we are going with the flow, we are in a race to the lowest common denominator in which the top micro percentage gloms even more of the world's wealth, while those who work take it in the youknowwhat.
Two years ago, there were two jobs available for our high school graduates: work in the prison or join the army. to your final solution.
The next section is how America fits into the flat world. In a nutshell: technology has enabled numerous people in developing countries to compete with individuals in the developed world. Friedman advocates severe free market capitalism in this book, but does so with social compassion. And if that is the case, individuals need to change the way they do life.This basically means globalization.Friedman addresses the topic in many different ways, but all of his points affect people in a personal way.
It is the government's job to help and educate these people so that they can join the rest of the individuals moving forward. The book is divided into six sections, each dealing with globalization in its own way. In the first section, Friedman describes the ten factors he thinks are flattening the world, including work flow software, uploading, supply-chaining, and outsourcing, among others. Thomas Friedman has a theory: the world is getting flatter.Friedman uses the metaphor of a flat world to describe what he calls the evening out of competition in the 21st century. I feel as if this is a must-read for anyone who plans on living in the 21st century. collaborating on a classroom project.
His basic rhetoric is this: the world is changing quickly, and it is for the better. There are some people who are going to be left behind.
It is easy to write this off as a business/economics book, but it is so much more than that. This is changing the way companies do business and the way nations do government.
Friedman's thinking is very liberal, but mixed with a heavy dose of capitalist conservatism. The next two sections deal with companies and individuals evolving in the flat world.
The book concludes with a section about geopolitics in the 21st century.There are numerous interesting stories in this book, including an Indian call center outsourcing its work, and school teachers in India and the U.S. He is compelling, and hard to ignore.
It is a record of the evolving technology and culture of the new world ahead of us.
This book should not have the word History anywhere in the title. I found it interesting to a point but it is not what I thought I was buying. If you want to learn about the current trends in present day society you will enjoy this book. I did not.
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