The Lexus and the Olive Tree [Revised Edition]: Understanding Globalization: Thomas L. Friedman

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Editorial Reviews

One day in 1992, Thomas Friedman toured a Lexus factory in Japan and marveled at the robots that put the luxury cars together. That evening, as he ate sushi on a Japanese bullet train, he read a story about yet another Middle East squabble between Palestinians and Israelis. And it hit him: Half the world was lusting after those Lexuses, or at least the brilliant technology that made them possible, and the other half was fighting over who owned which olive tree.

Friedman, the well-traveled New York Times foreign-affairs columnist, peppers The Lexus and the Olive Tree with stories that illustrate his central theme: that globalization–the Lexus–is the central organizing principle of the post-cold war world, even though many individuals and nations resist by holding onto what has traditionally mattered to them–the olive tree.

Problem is, few of us understand what exactly globalization means. As Friedman sees it, the concept, at first glance, is all about American hegemony, about Disneyfication of all corners of the earth. But the reality, thank goodness, is far more complex than that, involving international relations, global markets, and the rise of the power of individuals (Bill Gates, Osama Bin Laden) relative to the power of nations.

No one knows how all this will shake out, but The Lexus and the Olive Tree is as good an overview of this sometimes brave, sometimes fearful new world as you’ll find. –Lou Schuler
–This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From AudioFile
NEW YORK TIMES columnist Thomas Friedman gives a succinct and insightful explanation of the benefits and challenges of globalization and technology. The Lexus, the automobile that uses parts from all over the world, represents the marvels of technological development and global integration; the olive tree is synonymous with traditional, communal agrarian existence. Friedman is unabashed in his enthusiasm for new technologies and new methods of governance, but he also projects sympathy for those who fear and resist the move to a new economy. While his compelling dissection of the major issues confronting all societies slips into a pro-American diatribe in the tape’s final moments, the author commendably makes a complex topic accessible and enjoyable. J.B.B. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine– Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
–This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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