The Post-American World | 
 enlarge | Author: Fareed Zakaria
Publisher: W. W. Norton
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $13.94
You Save: $12.01 (46%)
New (24) Used (13) Collectible (1) from $13.94
Avg. Customer Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 4
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.2
ISBN: 039306235X
Dewey Decimal Number: 303.49
EAN: 9780393062359
ASIN: 039306235X
Publication Date: May 5, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: Brand New, Fast and Professional Shipping (no shipping to: APO, FPO, POBs, AK, HI, PR). Thank you!
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
One of our most distinguished thinkers argues that the "rise of the rest" is the great story of our time.
"This is not a book about the decline of America, but rather about the rise of everyone else." So begins Fareed Zakaria's important new work on the era we are now entering. Following on the success of his best-selling The Future of Freedom, Zakaria describes with equal prescience a world in which the United States will no longer dominate the global economy, orchestrate geopolitics, or overwhelm cultures. He sees the "rise of the rest"—the growth of countries like China, India, Brazil, Russia, and many others—as the great story of our time, and one that will reshape the world. The tallest buildings, biggest dams, largest-selling movies, and most advanced cell phones are all being built outside the United States. This economic growth is producing political confidence, national pride, and potentially international problems. How should the United States understand and thrive in this rapidly changing international climate? What does it mean to live in a truly global era? Zakaria answers these questions with his customary lucidity, insight, and imagination.
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
Zakaria offers 'the gift of others' to see us . . . . May 22, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Perhaps the most valued, but often unappreciated service anyone can offer is as Robbie Burns described in 1786, "Oh, wad some power the giftie gie us to see oursels as other see us!"
Zakaria is that power, and this book is his gift to America.
As a native of India, well schooled in the best of British education and values, he is an astute observer and commentator. From Alexis de Tocqueville to John Buchan (Lord Tweedsmuir) and Alistair Cooke, America is blessed by some exceptionally fine guests, observers and critics.
However, as a native of India, he is handicapped by his society's limitations in assessing the basic strengths of America. This weakness is similar to that of India, China and Britain - - always emphasizing the logical command-and-control order of competent intelligence, instead of the understanding the free wheeling serendipity of chaos.
The American genius is an ability to create order from chaos, and to tolerate chaos as the raw material of new ideas. It's the secret of Andrew Carnegie, just as it applies to Bill Gates, Sergey Brin and Jeff Bezos and many others from George Washington onward. When you understand the chaos and stubborn individualism from which America was created in 1776, you will understand the innovative aspect of America.
Another basic quality of America is tolerance, a contrast to the India/Pakistan dispute which claimed more than half-a-million lives and created 10 million refugees after independence in 1947. Likewise, in South Africa now, "illegal immigrants' are hunted down and killed; in East Germany, an estimated 160 migrants have been killed since the Berlin Wall came down.
In contrast, despite whining by right-wing xenophobes and the rants of talk-radio bozos, America absorbs immigrants like dry bread soaks up gravy. Both are better for it. Zakaria deals extensively with the benefits immigrants - - and he is one of those benefits, as this book richly proves - - but he ignores the nature of a society that embraces differences instead of seeking to kill them.
India offers one image (correct or not) of the importance of cows; America offers a thousand images of cows, and tolerates them all. It's the nature of a democracy, which Zakaria disparages in 'The Future of Freedom'.
It's these subtle differences which Zakaria overlooks; yet, these differences give America its world leadership role. It has nothing to do with guns and bombs or the blunders of President George Bush; the world always knows the date an inept (or brilliant) U.S. president will be out of office, a fact which few other countries can equal.
Tocqueville and Cooke described the spirit of America; Zakaria dwells too much on materialism and the fact the rest of the world may catch up. In brief, it is like comparing Tata to Ford instead of Hinduism to the Puritans.
As a final salute to democracy based on combined opinions (as of May 22) of others, the '4 star' rating is perfect.
A Nice Conversation Starter May 20, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
On the back cover of the book there is quote from author Walter Isaacson calling "The Post-American World" a "master piece of insight". The publisher describes the book as "prophetic insight". In reality, "The Post-American World" does not live up to such grandiose descriptions nor does it try to do so. This book is not ground breaking in its ideas or its analysis. The ideas expressed by Zakaria are familiar to anyone who reads the "Economist" or any number of books/publications that deal with economics and world affairs. In addition Zakaria's analysis is quite superficial, tackling complex issues in two or three paragraphs and often times using anecdotal evidence to support his arguments. This is not necessarily the result of flaws in Zakaria's ideas but rather comes from the fact that he has chosen to take on a broad and complex topic in just 272 pages. This book is essentially a well written, 272 page essay intended to be a conversation starter not the final word. If the reader is willing to accept it as such, then "The Post-American World" is an enjoyable and easy read that will hopefully spur lively debate about America's role in this new century.
 Easy reading, very informative, interesting insight May 19, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Interesting insight into the the "Post Amercian" World. Unfortunately, much of what the author says is true.
 EXCELLENT WRITING; GOOD SUBJECT; VERY BAD ANALYSIS May 18, 2008
18 out of 46 found this review helpful
Fareed Zakaria rose to prominence on account of the terrible Sept 11 tragedies, he the rare Muslim journalist at the top levels of the American press. Through this book he seeks to broaden his claim to expertise, not merely as an analyst of the war on terrorism but as a seer in every sense. For that ambition alone, this book is fatally flawed. It attempts a subject so stupendous that even a lifelong expert like Paul Kennedy came up short with his 'Rise and Fall of Great Powers.' So Fareed surely does, although the writing is fluid, flowing far better and faster than any writer other than Thomas Friedman.
The book covers the rise of India, China, and the 'rest,' although it never really focuses on other countries enough. It gives anecdotes as well as hard evidence of how and why the world has speeded up its growth and how and why the US is falling behind, not because Americans are doing something wrong but because the rest of the world is doing so much right.
The book is so well written and likely to be so popular that it in all probability will end up on college curriculums, much like Thomas Friedman and Howard Zinn have. Yet it is flawed to the point of being dangerous and is so for the following reasons.
1. It stands to teach political economy to millions of people who shall never take a class in political economy. So they would never realize that Fareed has no idea what he is talking about when he compares the 'Rise of the Rest' with the 'rise of the United States' and the 'rise of the Western World.' Well the US rose upon a stunning technological revolution which it itself produced, starting with the telegraph, telephone, airplane, the radio, the TV and the Internet. Neither China nor India has ever produced any substantial technology except body shopping. To this date, there is no evidence that a power can rise without such innovative intrinsic achievements. In that sense then, China and India are more like Spain, building palaces out of the gold of the New World, and headed to become like Japan, rich and capable but rarely a leader in any domain. That is a lesson of political economy he should have read before embarking on this book.
2. Fareed obviously reads vigorously and cuts newspaper articles voraciously. That is obvious in his sources and anecdotes. But those are really clumsy ways to attempt a subject so significant as the rise and fall of nations. Yes China's Macao is bigger than America's Las Vegas, but who but the poor of the world ever go to Macao. Yes India has the world's largest refinery, but the machinery and technology is all borrowed from the West. Yes Dubai is building the world's tallest building, but who cares, Silicon Valley has no building taller than 20 stories! Yes Singapore has the largest Ferris Wheel, but they are copying American culture. Yes a Mexican is the world's richest man but his cell phone empire has never produced a half way decent cell phone or transmission technology. Yes India has more billionaire's than any country outside the US, and no Fareed, you have it wrong, few if any are self made. I read it in Forbes.
In sum thus, both for its historical misjudgments and its static economic analysis, Fareed's book should be avoided. And if it is ever turned to paperback, then Fareed must correct the fatal flaw of his premise. Corrupt, centralized systems like China and India, growing fast only because they are just getting around to provide food and water to their people, can never overtake a free people, who vote in freedom, and think in freedom and innovate in freedom. Not even if the stock market is silly enough to value America's Dupont less than India's Reliance, or Mexican cell phone companies more than American ones, or value Bombay more valuable than New York City. Those are short term distortions.
One World May 17, 2008
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
An excellent book in predicting how the world will look like in 20-30 years. Globalization is the story of our age. Mr. Zakaria's background and world travel gave him an advantageous vintage point in assessing the world affairs and the trend for the next few decades.
Average reader will greatly benefit from reading the book. For example, the rise of China and India will affect the world in a very fundamental way because of the combined population of 2.5 billion. Globalization is not a blessing for everyone, it is rather harmful for the standard of living for 80% of the people in the developed world. But it is important to realize that it is not possible to stop such a trend, just as it is not morally correct to deny the right to development for China and India. Chinese and Indians are equal humans as the people in the west, they are not sub humans, they have every right to pursue happiness in life, to get rich, to produce, to consume, to release CO2 just like all of us living in the west. Even though all this CO2 will accelerate climate change which is harmful for all, how can we ask the Chinese or Indian to maintain one fourth to one tenth the amount CO2 released per person as we Americans? Should they take bus while they can drive, should they not take warm bath while they can?
If you are not happy with such a trend (rise of the rest), the most important thing that you can get from this book is the realization that it is inevitable. We must come to grips with the reality and try to make the best of it. The optimism he projects in his book is not the key point, he may not even really believe in it. Dislocations are wide spread in rural America and the small towns of America, he must know about it. But again, what can you do? Why should a worker in Oklahoma make 10 times the salary than the worker in Zhejiang, China while they both make 100 pairs of socks a day? They should be paid about the same - as long as the socks can be moved around, meaning "free trade".
|
|
|
