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Once again, Thomas Friedman takes on the economy and the political climate of the US. This time though, he seems to have come armed with a much better sense of his goals. I liked "the World is Flat," but it only pointed out to me a thousand and one reasons why change in this country's future is something we need to invest in. Now, Friedman is really talking in terms of action: real solutions to the real problems, as he can identify them
There are difficulties with Friedman's style, but he seems very thorough. You find him wending his way between personal stories, anecdotes, geopolitical backgrounds, specific examples, and generalizations about, well, practically everything, in almost every chapter. He has the ability to say many of the same things over and over again in different ways, if just to point out how some of his main points apply in many different situations.
I've just gotten through a few chapters, and I have been more impressed with his attention to big picture effects of politically motivated actions, and circumstances. For instance, he draws a causal line between the oil embargo of the 1970s, through anti-regulation in the Reagan Era, through the changes in the U.S. auto industry, to the economic and environmental policies of G.W. Bush, and the subsequent credit and mortgage bubble, showing how each piece fits in, and is connected to our system of government, education, and the military. I like the labyrinthine quality of Friedman's narratives, because they reveal the complexity of the global situation without requiring specific knowledge of every event discussed. For someone who doesn't remember the Reagan Era (I was too young), the situation of my early childhood, the rising demand for Suv's and the way people looked at owning homes, or going to college, were just the ways the world was. Friedman's opening thesis is that "things go on much as they always do... until they don't."
What was difficult to intolerable about Friedman's last books was that he was overly impressed with the invention of the internet and cell phones (this in 2005), and believed that his readers would be too. It left him little to actually say about the effects of a flattening world, as he was too busy reiterating the fact that the world is getting smaller. He often shies away from in-depth analysis, preferring to make up for it in sheer volume. So, if you're not a fan of the long winded type, you might not like this book either.
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