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Holistic Guidance - Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution--and How It Can Renew America
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List Price: $27.95
Our Price: $15.37
Your Save: $ 12.58 ( 45% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 333.79073
EAN: 9780374166854
ISBN: 0374166854
Label: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 448
Publication Date: 2008-09-08
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Release Date: 2008-09-08
Studio: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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Editorial Reviews:
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Thomas L. Friedman’s no. 1 bestseller The World Is Flat has helped millions of readers to see globalization in a new way. Now Friedman brings a fresh outlook to the crises of destabilizing climate change and rising competition for energy—both of which could poison our world if we do not act quickly and collectively. His argument speaks to all of us who are concerned about the state of America in the global future. Friedman proposes that an ambitious national strategy— which he calls “Geo-Greenism”—is not only what we need to save the planet from overheating; it is what we need to make America healthier, richer, more innovative, more productive, and more secure. As in The World Is Flat, he explains a new era—the Energy-Climate era—through an illuminating account of recent events. He shows how 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the flattening of the world by the Internet (which brought 3 billion new consumers onto the world stage) have combined to bring climate and energy issues to Main Street. But they have not gone very far down Main Street; the much-touted “green revolution” has hardly begun. With all that in mind, Friedman sets out the clean-technology breakthroughs we, and the world, will need; he shows that the ET (Energy Technology) revolution will be both transformative and disruptive; and he explains why America must lead this revolution—with the first Green President and a Green New Deal, spurred by the Greenest Generation. Hot, Flat, and Crowded is classic Thomas L. Friedman—fearless, incisive, forward-looking, and rich in surprising common sense about the world we live in today.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Friedman
Comment: One of the things I enjoy most about Friedman is his ability to distill complex matters (the Arab-Israeli crisis, globalization, renewable energy) into easily understandable components. This book makes the case that we are facing a renewable energy crisis and that the time to act is immediately. He focuses on five key problems: growing demand for scarce energy, a massive transfer of wealth to oil rich countries and their petrodictators, climate change, energy poverty, and biodiversity loss.
It is no mystery that our national addition to oil is funding petrodictatorships around the world. He argues in this book, as in his columns, that the administration missed a golden opportunity following 9/11 to release ourselves from our addiction to oil. Friedman points out that of the 23 nations that derive a majority of their GDP from oil, not a single one is a democracy (p. 104). He does not suggest we seek to bankrupt oil rich countries, which would only cause further destabilization and poverty. Rather he calls for renewed investment in renewable energy that will allow the world to be a better place politically.
In moving towards renewable energy, he does not suggest we should edit our lifestyles down to a bare minimum. Instead, he suggests things such as: banning cars over a certain weight or engine size, making it illegal for office parks to leave their lights on after hours, requiring electronics to be made with recyclable materials, requiring municipalities to set aside bike lanes, implementing congestion pricing (as in London) while also investing in mass transit. He argues we do not need to opt for drastic change if we have not yet tried the obvious. (p. 194).
Friedman points out that green has become very in vogue. In fact, "green" was actually the single most trademarked term in 2007 (p. 204). He believes we are not in the midst of a green revolution, but rather a green party. A true revolution requires higher efficiency standards, tougher regulations, and an ethic of conservation. It requires taking up the means to ensure the ends are achieved. It will be hard, but it also presents us with a great opportunity.
As with much of Friedman's writing, I found the book to be forward looking while also avoiding superfluous finger pointing. He provides an interesting read, full of compelling facts and common sensical solutions. At the very least, you are sure to learn something new by reading it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Hot, Flat, and Crowded
Comment: First of all, I love how fast my orders come form Amazon. The book itself is a pleasure to read. I really like the way that he presents the information. I can almost hear his voice when I am reading which gives me a very comfortable connection to understanding and appreciating the content.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Tentative good impression
Comment: Just started reading this and am impressed by the non-partisan tone...a rarity these days when it comes to energy and environmental discussions.
I like the way he doesn't point fingers at only one party; rather, he strongly points them at both parties and lists the history of where each failed to lead the US toward a coherent energy position that would make us energy independent.
This is a great topic that needs to be put at the top of any political agenda.....but without the partisan rhetoric of Al Gore. Americans of most political persuasions realize we need to shift from fossil fuels to alternatives. But we each can have our impetus for change (warming, political world problems, smog, conservation) without requiring the discussion revolve around whether global warming is man made and polar bears are/are not being endangered.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for Today's World
Comment: I'm not sure anyone could say it clearer than Friedman has in this book. We, as Americans and as global citizens, have a problem. That problem has been largely caused by us, and it is not receiving the attention it deserves. While economic troubles currently rule the airwaves (and rightly so), the environment and the world we live in is at peril if we continue on our current course. And the world, as the book's title suggests, is not getting any less crowded, thereby increasing the scale of the environmental problem and the means we will need to resolve it.
Sure, on a day-to-day basis, we may not notice the world changing, but the science over the last few decades is undisputable. The only question that remains is what we are going to do about it. The United States, Friedman argues, needs to take the lead, not because we are the biggest polluters and energy consumers in the world, but because we have the incentive, the creative and small-business infrastructure and the brainpower to turn our next big industry into green technologies and usher in the energy technology era. But like he has in his NYT columns, Friedman contends in this book that for the U.S. to rein in the next ET revolution it will require leadership from Washington. In looking at the two viable presidential candidates, I wish we had more hope. Why can't someone like Friedman run for president?
Customer Rating:
Summary: Important book
Comment: Suggests why the US should lead the Green movement.... why it is in our financial interest to do so. We can produce the Wind generators, solar panels, and associated electrical infrastructure or we can let the rest of the world take the lead and accept the political, financial and environmental consequences. This is a very important book. It outlines positive directions the US can take to maintain leadership in the world.
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