Book Review:
The Post-American World by Fareed Zakaria
January 19, 2011
This book was fantastic. It helped develop interests that are just being seeded related my career and education, and it was a great companion during a school trip to India in January.
Zakaria (whose previous book, The Future of Freedom, published in 2003, is now in my queue) describes the shift of power from the US, which held it basically unchallenged since the end of the Cold War through the 90's, to solely by the US through the end the the 90's, to more fractured sharing of power between many up-and-coming countries as well as countries which have been players on the world stage for centuries; the power-sharing of the latter situation makes it such that the US can't act unilaterally any longer without serious repercussions of trust, among other things.
I would like to write more about this book -- and perhaps read it a second time -- as its scope was vast and the topics relatively new to me. One thing I loved from my initial reading was a take on not only the black eyes but also the feathers-in-caps for the US over the 20th century, which of course relate to global political and other predictions for the 21st century. (I believe I may have a tendency to underestimate and belittle the progress and good deeds the US may have had a hand in, globally, over the last century, as I have learned more about US international relations and suffered some disillusioning.)
Would highly recommend to international observers. Great read.
No comments:
Post a Comment