Stage_Setter_Essay

Marty G. Roache’ ILE Common Core C100: Foundations – Stage Setter 13 February 2013 Thomas L. Friedman: National Strategies and Capabilities for a Changing World: Globalization and National Security INTRODUCTION Thomas L. Friedman is a renowned New York Times Foreign Affairs Columnist and Pulitzer Prize Winner for international reporting. As an author, he has been awarded the National Book Award, Overseas Press Club Award, as well as the inaugural Goldman Sachs/Financial Times Business Book of the Year (NY, 1). Friedman received a Master of Philosophy degree in Modern Middle East studies from Oxford University, and has served as the Chief Diplomatic Correspondent at the White House, and International Economics Correspondent, New York Times (Friedman, 1). Friedman is a globalist, who believes that the way forward for every society is to maintain the balance between the ‘Lexus and the Olive Tree’ and that America needs to be a ‘beacon for the whole world’ (Chillibreeze, 5). The Lexus corresponds to global markets, financial institutions and computer technologies, and the Olive Tree corresponds to whom we belong, that is, our linguistics, geography and history. The following is a critique of Thomas L. Friedman’s Globalization thesis derived from his book Understanding Globalization: the Lexus and the Olive Tree, New York (1999), which simply states “Globalization is not a trend and it is not a fad. It is actually the international system that Roache’ 2 replaced the Cold War System” (Friedman, 2). He brings into play Politics, Culture, National Security, Financial Markets, Empowering Technologies, and Environment (Chillibreeze, 2) to explain his concept of Globalization. As I agree with the key points listed, it is in light of these elements that I have chosen to evaluate Friedman’s thesis in this essay. Critique of Author’s Thesis In order to establish the framework for looking at international relations today, Friedman begins with his job as the foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times to help him answer the question “What attitudes” (Friedman, 1)' When he looked at the world, what framework and super story did he need to shape his own attitudes' The answer to that question was his book, The Lexus and the Olive Tree’s, Globalization concept. Friedman states that globalization is the international system that replaced the Cold War System, with its own set of “rules, logic, pressures, incentives and moving parts that will and do affect everyone’s country, community, and Armed forces” (Friedman, 1), i.e., geopolitics and economics. Critique Author’s Main Argument Friedman’s position is that we have essentially gone from a world of division and walls to a world of integration and webs. He uses two systems, The Cold War system, and the Globalization system to prove his point. In Friedman’s opinion, the Cold War was characterized by one overarching quality, and that was division; “the world was a divided place” with all threats and opportunities flowing from “who you were divided from. It was symbolized by a single word, The Wall, the Berlin Wall” (Friedman, 2). Today all threats and opportunities flow from “whom you are connected to” (Friedman, 2), rather than divided from, and the single word that symbolizes this connection is the Web, the Worldwide Web. Roache’ 3 Logical analysis and critique of threats, challenges, and opportunities During the Cold War, there was a hotline, which was in and of itself, a symbol; a symbol that connected the White House to the Kremlin that stated “although we may be divided, at least two people were in charge, the United States and the Soviet Union” (Impact, 2). Today, he asserts, we reach for the Internet, though it may progressively connect us all; however, no one is in charge. Nothing proved this point more than the infamous Love Bug virus, which allowed two college graduates to “melt down ten million computers and ten billion dollars in data. The love bug virus was to the age of globalization what the Cuban missile crises was to the Cold War – it was the moment that illustrated, on a global basis, our vulnerability in a world divided, where as the Love Bug virus illustrated our vulnerability in a world connected” (Friedman, 2). Friedman states that in the Cold War, the first question asked was, how big is your missile, and the second was, who are you divided from' In the age of globalization, the first question we ask is, how fast is your modem, and the second is, who are you connected to' Two very different systems, but from Friedman’s point of view, what truly distinguishes them “is how power is structured within them” (Impact, 3). In the Cold War, the big ate the small, in Globalization, the fast eat the slow (Friedman, 3). The Cold War was a state-based system, built on one balance of power, power between states and states. It was based on states balancing states, states confronting states, or states aligning with states (Friedman, 3). On the other hand, globalization, defined as “the integration of markets, finance, technology, and telecommunications…enabling each one of us to reach around the world faster, farther, deeper and cheaper than ever before (Friedman, 2), is built on three balances -- power between states and states, which still matters, states and supermarkets, defined as Roache’ 4 the 25 largest global stock, bond and currency markets in the world, and states and super empowered people, which can be good/bad, nice or angry” (Impact, 3). Friedman uses the examples - the US can destroy with bombs but Supermarkets can destroy by downgrading bonds, or Osama bin Laden, a super-empowered angry man that had his own network, which he used to “take on the United States of America (Impact, 3). Friedman states that democratization of finance, technology, and information converged and blew down the walls, creating the four key elements of this new globalization system. First was the erosion of the barriers around everyone’s’ country, company or community, which erased the protected and controlled product, and created the unprotected commodity. Second was the “new political garment or golden straightjacket” that every country has to put on, which embodies all the economic rules of the globalization system – your economy begins to grow, but your political choices narrow. Third is the new energy source, aka, “the electronic herd” (Friedman, 8), made up of investors, big multi-national banks and global multi-national corporations, those global financial market players that control investments and money flow in and out of countries through the mega markets of the world. Last is “how do I (country, company, community) relate to the herd' Friedman claims that plugging into it correctly allows one’s entire country, company or community to light up; plug into it wrong and the entire financial system, culture, or environment will be devastated. If you have a good state you will manage the flow between you and the herd quite well. If you have a lousy state, the flow will be disrupted and corrupted. Countries with the most efficient, non-corrupt, effective states are those that are succeeding” (Friedman, 9-11). Theory for Military future Roache’ 5 There are countries that are in the system, such as Costa Rica, and there are those that are not in the system, such as Iraq and Afghanistan, and then there are the “messy states”, those states that are too big to fail or too messy to work, for example, China, Russia and Japan. It is the weaknesses, not the strengths, of these countries that will shape the strategic environment. Messy states are a real issue. Why, because according to Freidman “globalization does not end geopolitics...but it sure as heck affects it. It forces every leader in the system to think three times before going to war...it ensures if they still decide to go to war...they are going to pay...they will pay three times that price...” (Friedman 11) because it isn’t the governments that hold the checkbooks now, it is the electronic herd, and they do not just give money away to fight wars, in fact it is just the opposite, “they punish you for fighting the war...they take money away from you” (Friedman, 11). According to Friedman, the role of the US Military will be extremely important. The U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Airforce, and the U.S. Marine Corps, are “the hidden fist that keeps the hidden hand operating” (Friedman, 12). We are the power structure that maintains and preserves all of the things that America brings to the globalization system, “the internetting of the world, the trade, the telecom expansion. We also need to be the “open hand...a helping hand...out there helping people into this system with our generosity, technical support, and our advice” (Friedman, 12). Friedman suggests it is American products, values, culture, good and bad, American films, good and bad, American fast food, good and bad, American ideas and businesses that are most being globalized today (Friedman, 12). America has one overriding national interest, and that is called sustainable globalization; as we are the biggest beneficiaries from sustaining Roache’ 6 this globalization system, it is in America’s best interest to keep this system as stable and sustainable as possible. Conclusion Friedman is a globalist, who believes that the way forward for every society is to maintain a balance between the global markets, financial institutions and computer technologies, and who we are, that is, our linguistics, geography and history. The role of the United States military in this new international relationship is to provide the essential power structure upon which the system rests; by reason of “globalization will not be sustainable if it is not democratized” (Impact, 17). Roache’ 7 Works Cited 1. A Summary of Thomas Friedman’s, Lexus and The Olive Tree. Februry 2013. Web. 11 Feb. 2013. . 2. Columnist Biogray: Thomas L. Friedman. The New York Times. Web. 9 Feb. 2013. . 3. Impact of Globalization on World Peace: Working Paper No. 27. Fifth Annual Arnold C. Harberger Distinguished Lecture, UCLA, 17 Jan. 2001. 4. Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Core Course 5122: Complexity Theory and National Security. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. . 5. The International Security Environment: Reading D. US Army Command and General Staff College, ILE Common Core C100: Foundations, C110: Stage Setter. National Strategies and Capabilities for a Changing World: Globalization and National Security. Institute of Foreign Policy Analysis, 2000. Web. Aug. 2011. 6. The Purdue OWL. Purdue U Writing Lab, 2010. Web. 5 Feb. 2013. .