In this book the journalist Thomas Friedman shares his view on the world in the beginning of the 21st century. His emphasis is on globalization (what he calls 'flattening') - what has caused it, what keeps shaping it and how it will affect our future.
There are many interesting points made in the book. Outsourcing, in particular. Friedman is "all for it", arguing that it is an inevitable economic development that will only bring good to the world. Trying to stop it is undemocratical, goes against the free-market capitalism dogmas of the western world, and in the long run will only do damage to the world's economy. I wholeheartedly agree with this analysis, it precisely reflects my thoughts from a couple of years ago when I was fuming on all the anti-outsourcing opinions.
Another interesting topic Friedman discusses is the Arab-Muslim world in general, and "new terrorism" in particular. The analysis of why terrorists do what they do it especially fascinating, and I find that I agree with most of what he says. I'm also in sync with his views that oil just keeps the world back, and one of the best things the United States can currently do is invest in making itself free from oil - which would benefit the world economy, the environment, and put the Arab nations on a correct path.
That said, the book could certainly benefit from a good diet. The author spends too much time repeating the same points over and over, and in my opinion this could have easily been a 200-page book (instead of 560). In addition, I think Friedman could benefit from a real tech-savvy advisor, since his descriptions of technology (like BitTorrent and various web technologies) is lacking.
Eli Bendersky's website