Discussion / Reading Questions

Friedman

 

The New System and The Lexus and the Olive Tree                     

June 16            pp. 3-16 and 29-34

What does Friedman mean when he says that globalization has replaced the Cold War as the defining international system?  7 How does Friedman define globalization and free-market capitalism? 9 What are the three balances that Friedman discusses in globalization? 13-4 What is the analogy of the Lexus and the Olive Tree? 31 What are the basic elements of human motivation? 34

 

The Golden Straightjacket and The Electronic Herd                      

June 17            pp. 101-17 and 132-42

What was the first era of globalization? 103  What is the Golden Straightjacket? 104 What are its “golden rules”? 105  Why is it increasingly difficult to resist the Golden Straightjacket? 109 What is the Electronic Herd? 109 What are “short-horns” and “long-horns”? 114 What is “foreign direct investment”? 132 Why are all world leaders like governors? 139  What three “democratizations” gave birth to today’s globalization system? 140

 

DOSCapital 6.0 and The Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention 

June 18            pp. 151-66, 248-54 and 261-4

What are the types of “hardware” and “operating systems” that a country can have? 151 What is the link between globalization and democratization? 153 Is the state becoming increasingly irrelevant in globalization? 158 How do free-markets operate? 161 Why don’t McDonalds countries go to war? 249 What are the caveats to the Golden Arches Theory? 252 How does Kosovo support or detract from the theory? 253 What ways does globalization influence geopolitics? 261

 

Will Globalization Make You Happy?

June 19            (handout)

What is the relationship between economics (expressed in per capita GDP) and happiness? What is the actual tipping point for this relationship?  What do you think about Robert Frank’s evolutionary explanation for why increasingly wealthy individuals are not increasingly happy? What is culture lag?

 

Demolition Man

June 23            pp. 279-291

What is the globalization lifestyle based on? 280 What is the first hope Friedman lists for environmentally sustainable globalization? 281  Because technology and conservation are unlikely to move fast enough to save the environment, what is the best alternative? 282  What strategy should be adopted to change corporations and shareholders? 286  How are “super-empowered environmentalists” helped by globalization? 289

 

The Backlash and The Groundswell

June 24            pp. 327-364

What are some of the reasons for the backlash? 329 What is the “turtle” analogy? 331 Why is there no alternative ideology to globalization? 334 What is systemic misunderstanding? 340 Why does this help us understand why some areas do not embrace globalization? 340-1 What is the “wounded gazelle” analogy? 342 Where does globalization emerge from? 348 Why are social structures important even in globalization? 356 What is the point of the Grameen Bank story? 360

 

There is a Way Forward

June 25            pp. 434-475

What is the role of the U.S. in the world today? 435 Who are “integrationists,” “separatists,” “social-safety-netters,” and “let-them-eat-cakers”? 438-9 What two things does sustainable globalization require? 440 What is the analogy of the trapeze? 445 the trampoline? 446-7 and the safety net? 449 What are the two biggest threats to today’s global financial system? 452 How do you fix bad-borrowing countries? 453 What is the goal of lending? 458 How do you fix bad-lenders? 461 What is the role of the U.S. military in globalization? 464  What is the analogy of the hidden hand, the fist, and the open hand? 465