I just completed reading the book “The World is Flat” by Thomas Friedman. He has talked about lot many things in the book!!! I think some of those things are not even related to globalisation but the way he looks at it – it seems everything is globalisation.
Anyways, I will review the book in some other post maybe but one of the things or “flattening factors” as Mr. Friedman has emphasized on is – importance of free market or FTAs.
FTAs can be loosely defined as “agreement where a designated group of countries have agreed to eliminate tariffs, quotas and preferences on most (if not all) goods between them” – as quoted from wiki.
I remember reading about FTAs back in school and college days, but then I found this topic utterly boring .. to the extent that I used to sleep even before our teacher / professor could complete the definition.
But now – since I myself am being “globalised” – I suddenly find myself interested. I started to wonder with questoins like “what all countries have signed such FTAs” “How many FTAs India have signed till now” “How many FTAs USA have signed till now” “Is their are any further negotiations going on for FTA.” etc etc
As my quest for knowledge, I turn to wiki and found following links useful :-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Free_Trade_Agreements
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_trade_agreement
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement
Then I thought further – Is there any possibility of FTA between India and USA? At this point of time it seems very logical to have one .. isnt it? I dont know. I have a feeling that an FTA between India USA will not be liked on both sides of country. Some people will simply hate to have one. On other hands, maybe it will be welcomed by many people – I think I belong to them. I think an FTA between India and USA will benefit both India and USA – as Mr. Friedman also mentioned repeatedly in his book.
Hmm anyways, I was still wondering if somebody on either side of world have already thought about the idea? If any round of negotiation is already going on …. you can call me utterly ignorant but It seems yes, it seems right now they are focussing on FTA for at least IT services sector.
Hmmm … that seems the logical thing to do. In fact I went – wow!!! That would certainly change lot of things. To start with – that should mean easy employment for Indian IT professionals with american companies back at home or even in terms of visa norms. Ha !! No more H1B visas !!!
Anyways …. I will certainly keep watching all FTAs now. As I know many things are going to change in next 50 years – as far as globalisation is concerned – and I know FTAs have a big role to play in that.
Thomas Friedman’s New York Times bestseller, The World is Flat, asserts that the international economic playing field is now more level than it has ever been. As popular as it may be, some reviewers assert that by what it leaves out, Friedman’s book is dangerous . I just finished a great little book that challenges Friedman’s idea of a ‘flat’ world. Here’s a snippet from an interview with the authors:
“The world isn’t flat as a result of globalization,” say Ronald Aronica and Mtetwa Ramdoo, business analysts and authors of a critical analysis of Friedman’s book. “Globalization is the greatest reorganization of the world since the Industrial Revolution,” says Aronica. But by what Friedman’s book ignores or glosses over, it misinforms people and policy makers alike.
Aronica and Ramdoo’s concise monograph, The World is Flat?: A Critical Analysis of Thomas L. Friedman’s New York Times Bestseller, brings clarity to many of Friedman’s stories and explores nine key issues Friedman largely disregards or treats too lightly. To create a fair and balanced exploration of globalization, the authors cite the work of experts that Friedman fails to incorporate, including Nobel laureate and former Chief Economist at the World Bank, Dr. Joseph Stiglitz.
Refreshingly, you can now gain new insights into globalization without weeding through Friedman’s almost 600 pages of tedious tome. “If you read Friedman’s book, and were awed, you really should read more rigorous treatments of this vital subject,” says Ramdoo.
I read Aronica and Ramdoo’s 143 page book in one sitting!
Aronica and Ramdoo conclude by listing over twenty action items that point the way forward, and they provide a comprehensive, yet concise, framework for understanding the critical issues of globalization. They paint a clear and sometimes alarming picture of the early twenty-first century landscape, and present timely information needed by governments, businesses, and individuals everywhere.
And what I also like is that the authors provide a wealth of interesting information at the book’s Web site:
http://www.mkpress.com/Flat
Also a thought-provoking 13 minute Overview on the Web:
http://www.mkpress.com/FlatOverview.html
And the recent interview: “Aronica and Ramdoo pummel Friedman’s flat world back into a sphere,”
http://www.mkpress.com/AronicaRamdooInterview.html
Also a really interesting 6 min wake-up call: Shift Happens! http://www.mkpress.com/ShiftExtreme.html
There is also a companion book listed: Extreme Competition: Innovation and the Great 21st Century Business Reformation
http://www.mkpress.com/extreme
http://www.mkpress.com/Extreme11minWMV.html
So, if you want to know much more about globalization than what Friedman provides you, check out
http://www.mkpress.com/flat for concise and very interesting information.
Oh anonymous commenter, who art thou? 🙂
Thanks anyways for the detailed comment and tip+link for Aronica and Ramdoo.
I will definitely go through them as soon as I get time.