"The Post-American World" by Fareed Zakaria (W. W. Norton,
9780393062359, $25.95)
Curious what Barack Obama is reading while on the campaign trail? Here's the
scoop: it's Fareed Zakaria's "The Post-American World." Zakaria is an editor
for Newsweek and a frequent foreign affairs columnist for the Washington
Post. His new book tackles one big question from several fascinating angles:
Following the Cold War, after September 11, after Iraq and Afghanistan, what
power if any can the United States wield in the emerging order of the
Twenty-First Century?
Zakaria makes it clear that his term "post-American" doesn't describe an
anti-American world but rather one that's just not as interested in the U.S.
as it used to be. The U.S. remains the globe's sole military superpower but
encounters more economic competitors every day. Today's story, Zakaria says,
is "the rise of the rest" as other nations (China, India, Russia, South
Africa, and Brazil, especially) come into their own as key economic and
political players.
Zakaria looks at the world through a big lens, and he's interested in
viewing issues across the breadth of time: How is America's position now
like the Britain's at the end of its empire? What's a superpower's best
response to the threat of terrorism? How can America's leaders and
entrepreneurs maintain the country's competitiveness in a global
marketplace? (Some answers will surprise you. For instance, do you think of
higher education as one of America's strongest export industries? Zakaria
makes a case for it.)
"The Post-American World" devotes a chapter each to the rising powerhouses
of China and India, and Zakaria deals in depth with how these nations will
likely affect the world's economy, environment, and balance of power. His
book would be wholly worthwhile for these two chapters alone, but he also
goes on to diagnose and prescribe for the U.S. itself.
In Zakaria's view, America will serve its interests best by exercising its
sorely neglected capacity for "soft power" rather than its all-to-obvious
military might: we need more talk of carrots, he tells us, less attention to
the sticks. After all, in a world with many powerful players--one in which
no country can successfully go it alone--being the nation that defines the
issues, sets the agenda, and builds the coalition is one powerful nation
indeed.
Most of all, Zakaria recommends that America should return to its
long-established stance of openness--to the world, to ideas, to immigration
and movement, to other cultures, and to the future. The fear and rigidity
that have distracted the nation over the past eight years, he says, need to
end so that America can really be America again.
"The Post-American World" is my top pick for a great Father's Day gift: it's
the perfect thing for a Global Dad or a Business Dad who wants to see the
big picture. It's also a great, accessible read for anyone eager to catch a
glimpse into America's likely future in the brave new century ahead.
Review by
Mark David Bradshaw, May 29, 2008
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