The World Is Flat

Over the weekend I finished reading "The World Is Flat" by the mustache of understanding, Thomas Friedman. All jokes aside about how Friedman doesn't really understand metaphors and the fact that he's an egomaniacal starf***er, I typically enjoy Friedman's writing. I think he gets a lot of criticism because he doesn't fit neatly into the liberal/conservative worldview of the United States. Instead he has his own ideas (which I don't agree often) but he's able to present them and his support for them without denigrating others' ideas, which is increasingly rare.

In "The World is Flat", Friedman explores the triple convergence of events that has, in his words, flattened the world. The factors of production can be almost anywhere and work on almost anything. The increased use of the internet, workflow tools and standardized software packages has flattened the world because of increased collaboration between citizens of different countries. Of course, this is a giant "well, duh" but Friedman explores the causes and the effects of these changes that have occurred since he wrote "The Lexus and the Olive Tree", another good book.

I did like "The World is Flat", Friedman consolidated some thoughts I had had. But, while reading, the thing that struck me the most was the hopefulness of Friedman. There was a palpable sense of optimism in the book and that made even more enjoyable for me. Friedman explored a favorite topic of mine, how easy it is for the world's poor to plug into the global marketplace. All it takes, in many parts of the world, is an internet connection and an ebay account and you can have your own marketplace. The problem lies in government regulations and red tape that hinder an individual's ability to start their business.

I think Friedman did an excellent job at presenting the world as he sees it. And, in turn, it was fun to read. I don't think there were too many great insights from Friedman, but he did get me thinking about several ideas. If a book can get me to think, I will typically enjoy it, "The World is Flat" got me thinking and I did enjoy it.