The post-American World

Fareed Zakaria provides history and the insight needed to understand where we are and how we got here. Without that insight you cannot best understand where we are going. I believe he is spot on. It is time for us, Americans, to realize we are only a part of the whole. We are currently a big part of it but in the end it is the whole that matters. He is correct in that we failed by succeeding. The world learned what we wanted to teach them. We succeeded. Now they are our competition. If we respond as we have over the past 200 years, we can still be the leader of a much more successful global environment. Then we will have succeeded by succeeding.

As a Republican and considering a book written by a person from India, I was skeptical of the slant from which this might be written. After the first chapter, I realized how gifted and intelligent Fareed is as a writer. It is an accolade to President Obama that he read and was captured by photo with the book in hand as it gives a perspective on where we have been and where we are going as an economic power. This should be required reading for a college economics class.

Fareed Zakaria is a very reasonable man. In this sense, the contrast between him and the rest of mainstream American punditry is stark indeed. Coming from anyone else, a book with the title The Post-American World could plausibly entail an exercise in sensationalist doomsday forecasts; from Zakaria, we know that such is not the case. Some conservatives and patriots may disagree with the book's contents, but it is impossible to dismiss as a self-loathing work of anti-nationalism.

Zakaria has the distinct privilege of combining his position of respect and influence within the court of American public opinion with the nuanced perspectives he has gained from his initial outsider status. In 1982, the author was an eighteen year-old Indian student on a flight to the United States, about to embark on a four-year educational journey in a country where he would eventually settle. "The preceding decade had been a rough one in India," writes Zakaria, "marked by mass protests, riots, secessionist movements, insurgencies, and the suspension of democracy."

But something has happened since then -- in India, in China, and in many other nations as well. Zakaria calls this something "the rise of the rest," as "countries all over the world have been experiencing rates of economic growth that were once unthinkable." Unsurprisingly, given the title of his book, Zakaria is not merely interested in this economic phenomenon as a historical anomaly, but also as an indication of America's rapidly changing role in the new era. In this, our twenty-first century edition of a brave new world, "the distribution of power is shifting, moving away from American dominance. That does not mean we are entering an anti-American world. But we are moving into a post-American world [emphasis in original], one defined and directed from many places and by many people."

Instead of wallowing in national self-depression, however, Zakaria welcomes this new period. He notes that the American share of global GDP has remained relatively constant for decades; and he elucidates the truths hidden behind the alarmist (and often misunderstood) statistics about American decline. But while Zakaria's prognostications leave plenty of space for a bright future, his is not a utopian vision unencumbered by hard facts. (One notable exception is his diagnosis of the American economy: "The economic dysfunctions in America today are real, but, by and large, they are not the product of deep inefficiencies within the American economy." The first edition of his book was printed in April 2008, just months before the economy bottomed out; a later paperback edition included a new preface predicting that "the current economic upheaval will only hasten the move to a post-American world.") Indeed, Zakaria levels criticisms in a variety of areas, decrying the United States' "highly dysfunctional politics," acknowledging that "the American school system is in crisis," and dubbing the nation an "enfeebled" superpower. In his final chapter, "American Purpose," Zakaria asks, "How did the United States blow it? [It] has had an extraordinary hand to play in global politics...Yet, by almost any measure...Washington has played this hand badly. America has had a period of unparalleled influence. What does it have to show for it?"

That is a question whose answer will depend on the person, but Zakaria's prescription for American healing, while hardly groundbreaking, is based in historical precedent: more multilateralism. Contrary to some who argue that idealism is always the refuge of lesser nations while realpolitik is embraced by hegemons, Zakaria points out that the United States "was the dominant power at the end of World War II, when it founded the United Nations, created the Bretton Woods system of international economic cooperation, and launched the world's key international organizations. America had the world at its feet, but Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Harry Truman chose not to create an American imperium."

Interestingly, Zakaria's ideas have found traction in the administration of President Barack Obama. The results are mixed: Obama's extended hand to Iran was met with a clenched fist and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been left largely unaffected, but Obama was able to broker a deal between the heads of the Chinese and French states at the G-20 summit, and the United States and Russia recently finalized a nuclear arms reduction deal. It remains to be seen exactly what will follow from the American presidency's renewed emphasis on diplomacy, but early returns indicate some potential for positive results. We may live in a post-American world, but if Fareed Zakaria has any say in the theater of global politics, the United States will be far from playing a bit role.

[...]

This book is an excellent read and highly educational. As an American, who is concerned about our county's future, I found comfort in this book inasmuch as the author, Fareed Zakaria, outlines, how we can retain our position as a strong country and leader of the free world, if we adapt to the changing world and modify our behavior accordingly. It is my hope that our presidential candidates and all high ranking government officials will read this book.

This book is eye-opening and thought-provoking. Even if you don't agree with every thought the author has, you have to come away from this book with a broader world view - and a realistic view of the future.

Fantastic read. The author sums up a lot of history in a few pages with insights that opened my mind to what was really happening and what is now happening. Wish all our candidates would read this book.

Mr. Zakaria has a very perceptive view of the future of the world and America's range of possible roles within that future. If you study history with a view to how the human race has developed, one of the themes within that view is that, for our protection, we continually learn to form larger and more inclusive groups within which to function. From that viewpoint, globalization and world unity are inevitable, so the question becomes "How can we best get there and best function, once there?" Though Zakaria did not say this in those words, he really outlined the general concept thoroughly and well. His multicultural background has given him opportunity to develop valid perceptions -- and in addition he has developed formidable powers of analysis.

I loved his powerful but realistic optimism. I think all of us function best when we can embrace optimism. In some ways, his concluding point that the present United States is engulfed in a fear that is entirely inappropriate for a world leader is the most important of the many important points in his book. We CAN control our emotions -- and none of us wants to be hag-ridden by fear -- and the ideas and perceptions outlined in his book can help us to emerge from that atmosphere of fear that motivates too many USA actions at present.

Not too long ago, I received an email forward, picturing president Obama carrying a copy of this book. The accompanying text implied that this was some sort of muslum propaganda written by a so-called fellow muslum. Clearly, the Obama basher who penned that email did NOT read this book! I made it my business to acquire a copy from the store.com and am happy to dispell the hyperbole.

This author does nothing more sinister than to point out how great America WAS and IS and WILL continue to be in the future. He explains very nicely, how we became a global power (on all levels), and what we must continue to do as a nation to maintain our greatness in an expanding world. The "post America" referance is not about our demise but about how we must fit in as other nations like China, India, etc rise in status to the level of "Global players". It is not about the downfall of the USA but the rise of the rest of the world. It describes how our Western style economics and politics has shaped the rest of the world and how, by following our lead, the rest of the world has gained a large measure of equivelance. They, in particular, China and India, are becoming global players and our role must transition from one of sheer global dominance to global cooperation.

I read this book very patiently, waiting for the other shoe to drop, as it were. If this was to end up being some sort of muslum propaganda, it would have to become evident eventually. Page after page, that scenario never developed. In fact, this author seems quite critical of islamic fundamentalism and pays no great homage to any religion at all.

So, if like me, you were inticed by the bothersome email, rest assured, there are no nefarious plots to be found in this book. In fact, I am rather happy to find that our president is reading or has read this book. I would recommend it for anyone who is currious about how we have and will fit into the global picture.

Mr. Zakaria is an unabashed free trader and glosses over the bad results the IMF and WTO and the Chicago School of Economics have had on real people. However, he is an intelligent observer and has good recommendations for the future. He also has some pretty good insight into where we have gone wrong. This should definitely be read by voters getting ready to choose a president.

The information and point of view in Zakaria's book should be required reading for all Americans. The rise of "the rest" -- China, India, Brazil, etc. and the "decline" (or is it?) -- of the U.S. is spelled out clearly.
It could help diminish the chronic U.S. self-absorption. I understand Barack Obama has read it. I've sent it to all my family in the U.S. and currently in China.

I can't recommend the Kindle edition. The Kindle edition is based on the hardcover text, and so it does not have Zakaria's very interesting preface written for the paperback edition. This is, unfortunately, a common problem with Kindle editions: They are not updated to reflect new text in the paperback edition.

The book is an extremely interesting account of a changing world containing many nations as they make their way onto a more equal financial/economic footing with other nations of the world including the US. Particularly strong are his discussions of Asian nations, particularly India and China, as they compete with the west.
Mr. Zakaria is a fine American citizen whose articles have appeared in newspapers and magazines since, I believe, the 1980's. He has authored a number of books in addition to this one. His TV program, GPS [Global Public Square], is excellent. He was born in India of Muslim parents. He says he is not very religious.
Because of his parentage and appearance, he has been the subject of some of the factitious and destructive writings, Emails, that are passed from one to another within groups of anti Muslim extremists.
The book is absolutely not about the demise of America but about the coming of age of many other nations.

Overall I think this is a superficial analysis. There are many historical analogies but there were few compelling arguments.

What's more, the editorial job for the Kindle edition is really really bad. It seems that the editor did not know how to typeset the emdash "--". Instead, he/she used two hyphens with a space in the middle "- -". This caused a lot of formatting issues. Also the author's name (!!) did not format correctly in the main menu. I emailed the customer service but there are still no corrected version as of today.

Excellent book, as always Zakaria has put together a well researched, insightful and highly readable book. Though I felt that his first publication, The Future Of Freedom, was more thought provoking that's a pretty high bar to be judged against. Overall I believe that Zakaria is one of the most balanced and insightful authors in the space and he isn't afraid to paint a positive picture of the future, unlike some fear-mongering authors on the right that I won't mention.

I thoroughly enjoyed Fareed Zakaria's "The Post-American World". It is a tightly written, clearly stated work. However, despite it being trite to say, the premise of the book is well summarised in the opening sentence:

"This is a book not about the decline of America but rather about the rise of everyone else."

Zakaria is simply stating the obvious. Other countries are growing at a much faster rate than America. In the fullness of time, there is every chance that they will catch America. No longer will America be the world's sole dominant economy. Americans may have trouble coming to grips with this concept but it is happening regardless. One only has to travel around south east Asia to see the changes. China is no longer a forgotten backwater. Singapore is already a developed nation. Even India is on the path of rapid economic growth.

Again, although it may seem trite, Zakaria provided an interesting analogy of these events. He asks the reader to consider the sport of tennis. In the 1970s, three Anglo-Saxon nations (or perhaps only two) utterly dominated this sport. But by 2007, of the final sixteen players in the U.S. Open, ten different nations were represented. The Anglo-Saxon nations including America hadn't crashed so much as the other nations had simply caught up.

Yet, overall, Zakaria remains positive. For all America's faults, including a bickering political process, opportunities abound for the country. What will matter is not how the U.S. compares with its past but how it compares with others. Zakaria seems optimistic that the U.S. can continue to succeed. However, success may be measured in different ways. Zakaria concludes his book with a wonderful reference to his own experience of first coming to the U.S. in 1982:

"For America to thrive in this new and challenging era, for it to succeed amid the rise of the rest, it need fulfill only one test. It should be a place that is as inviting and exciting to the young student who enters the country today as it was for this awkward eighteen-year-old a generation ago".

In other words, America must remain open to the wider world in all senses and be prepared to engage with it.

A balanced review of why things have gone right or wrong in the world frim both inside the USA and from outside of the USA. Provides a rare perspective in a constructive manner suggestive of how one might move to alter the outcome of how all of us on this planet could well bring about positive changes we want or avoid out comes we do not want to experience.

Not much depth to this book. Zakaria tells you stuff you know already, nothing new in this book, no new insights. In this regard Zakaria reminds me of Malcolm Gladwell; both take things you know already and repackage them. Can’t see what the hype is about. I only kept reading in the hopes that the expected profound insights would materialize, but alas they did not. Quit after reading 85% of the book.

It happened to Great Britain after the two World Wars and its happening to the USA but for far different reasons. We are doing it to ourselves. Sakaria provides a succinct, direct and enlightening view of America's loss of world wide competitve status since the 1980s. I is not political; but it is enlightening. An excellent analysis of our current position in a global economy. This book is far better than anything Tom Friedman has written.

Thomas Duda

I liked this book because it was very informative about the world economy. It opened my eyes to what other countries were doing and where they are standing in the world stage.
It also educated me on where other countries are in the financial market and I ask why are we continue to send them aid

I bought this after reading several ignorant posts on FB (which I really have to learn to avoid)...... about how horrible it was that President Obama was caught in a photograph reading this book! I am halfway through the book, and it's so informative and truthful .... and not the MUSLIM TERRORIST BOOK that so many uninformed (and I feel racist) Americans have hinted. I have a whole new respect for Fareed Zakaria. Every American should read this book.

Contrary to the title, this book is not about the demise of America. It is about the rise of the rest of the world and its global implications.

The author makes somtimes contradictory statements. For example, he firmly believes that India will economically surpass China mainly because India is a democratic country (democracy is better for long term economic growth he says). His conclusion ignores his own data that India is growing at 6.9% versus China's 9%, the China's economy is about 3 times as large, and there is no indication China is slowing down anytime soon. And he ignores some major long term problems in India, such as its decisively 3rd world literacy rate (around 60%).

The same goes for his purported demise of America. He says that America has too many long term competitive advantages (democracy, top notch universities, market flexibility, willing to accept immigrants, demographic trends etc) to be relegated to anything less than a superpower in the next few decades. So how does that translate into a "Post American World"? America just will not be AS influencial, says the author, since it must share its power with the rest of the world.

It appears the author has trouble coming to a firm conclusion on most subjects except that there is an unprecedented global economic growth.

Fareed Zakaria does a great job explaining how the US will fit into this complicated world as we begin to shift from a single superpower to multiple voices that will need to be heard. I highly recommend this read to anyone looking for very probable future and how the US will fit into that new society.

Anyone with an interest in world affairs and global economics should read this book. Zakaria, who is a naturalized citizen, gives the reader a much-needed, objective perspective on flagging American hegemony.
America is still great, but the rest of the world is catching up. Read this and understand the future.

I usually have 2 measures to determine how much I like a book; 1). How many times I refer to it in casual conversation 2). How much more I would like to hear from the author on the subject. This book scores very highly on both accounts.

This is one of my textbooks for my International Relations course, and turned out to be one of the reasons I'm enjoying this course so much. Even though I've previously had no interest in politics, I found this book very interesting and enlightening. Zakaria's observations make sense and seem accurate.

A brief summary of America (the Empire) today and how the 'rise of the rest' as China & India catch up to our standard of living, will be a future challenge. Too bad Fareed isn't a biologist or did some simple compounding math. Fareed fails to address how we will accommodate 3 billion more souls in the next 40 years and the environmental destruction that will follow. As E.O. Wilson pointed out in 2002 "The Bottleneck" Scientific American, for '...the world to reach present U.S. levels of consumption with existing technology would require four more planet Earths'. That was written when there were 6 billion people...how many Earths are needed when there are 9 billion in 2050? Fareed has no answer except increase GDP which he mentions over and over as if this is the only measure of progress. What about an equitable society with health care, education and food security for all...not in America. He ignores the 75+ and counting countries America has either occupied or overthrown in the past 50 years, some democratically elected (Chile, Iran, Congo, Panama, Ecuador to name a few) see The Economic Hit Man. And the 120 plus countries occupied by American troops making the world safe for McDonalds and McDonnell-Douglas. Corporate taxes are too high at 35% says Fareed but he fails to mention that few pay it. Some fortune 500 companies pay nothing while the effective corporate tax rate is just 13.4% and total corporate taxes as a percentage of total US tax revenue has declined by 2/3s since 1960 (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities [...]). Onward the corptocracy! Flat, Crowded and Hot is a better read but still worships at the altar of capitalism. Of course we've seen how well capitalism works for the poor, shrinking middle class and homeless while socialism (bailouts) has fattened the already bloated Wallstreet banksters.

I really enjoyed Fareed Zakaria's book, The Post-American World, 2.0. Mainly because, as a foreginer, he provides a unique and challenging view of the United States; something you don't quite see nowadays in the media. In his book, he is well researched, and provides appropriate context to the history of the world, especially the United States. It is written in plain English, without much of the "babble" you hear on many radio or cable TV talk shows; the same rants and rages. He goes into painting the picture of the up and coming countries the US will have to contest or compete with if it wishes to remain "on top!" Because of this, he provides a convincing argument for a different approach to US foreign policy and things like immigration. It is a great book, especially for the younger generation who might be questioning themselves as to what type of future could possibly hold for them. In the end Zakaria provides us with hope, and if we become politically mature enough to elect representatives serious for change, we just might learn from our mistakes and history itself.

I love his program and this book did not disappoint. Fareed is a intellectual that does not take provocative stands to make headlines or sell more books. I almost always agree with his "take" on things and find him a treat to watch or read.

My son was assigned to read this book in college. Based on the title and the fact that some people made a big deal that President Obama was reading it made me decide that I should read it too.

I was surprised to find what I felt to be a very pro-American book. If you have an interest in the future of the US and the relationship the US has to the rest of the world then you will enjoy this book. Put it at the top of your "to read" list. I couldn't give it a higher recommendation.