The book is a little dated now, but it is still an interesting read. It basically focuses on the benefits of free trade and how countries and groups who reject globalization and free trade will be destine for the dust bin of history. Reality is probably somewhere in between this fiewpoint and those who completely oppose free trade and globalization. In general I found the book interesting. He does make some good points. There is no question that the world is getting smaller and more intertwined with the rise of the internet. But are cultural identies and the overall control of governments over their economies going to disappear, probably not. I recommend the book but don't necessarly agree with all of its conclusions.

Chiếc Lexus và cây oliu, đại diện cho hiện đại và truyền thống. Toàn cầu hóa mang đến cho chúng ta sự tiện nghi, kỹ thuật tiên tiến nhưng chúng ta không nên bỏ qua các giá trị truyền thống tốt đẹp của mỗi quốc gia. Mỗi quốc gia cần học hỏi, chuẩn bị và đón nhận những lợi ích của toàn cầu hóa. Song cũng giữ gìn các giá trị tốt đẹp, tránh để bị đồng hóa trước sức mạnh của toàn cầu hóa hay Mỹ hóa.

Tôi trở thành fan của tác giả khi đọc Thế giới phẳng, quả thực cuốn đó khiến tâm trí mình mở ra rất nhiều và tìm hiểu được nhiều thứ bổ ích. Nay được bạn cho mượn cuốn này cảm thấy rất vui và cảm thấy mình thật sự chưa đọc hết tất cả sach của tác giả này. Toàn cầu hóa tuy bây giờ đã không còn quá xa lạ với chúng ta nhưng trước kia nó là một khái niệm khá xa lạ và gây những ý kiến trái chiều xung quanh nó. Họ lo sợ và e ngại nó nhưng Toàn Cầu hóa chính là cánh cửa để mở ra kỉ nguyên mới, hiện đại và sung túc hơn. Nó sẽ xóa đói giảm nghèo và nâng cao mức sống của người dân trên khắp thế giới. Dù có những điều tiêu cực nhưng nếu chúng ta chấp nhận Toàn cầu hóa mà vẫn giữ được cây ô liu và giá trị bản sắc của chúng ta, thì Toàn cầu hóa sẽ mang lại trái ngọt

Not happy with the one sided portrayal of globalisation, only from America's perspective. A few analogies and examples are good, but otherwise the book sounds like a tale of jingoism without much substance and expertise.

Chiếc lexus là biểu tượng của thời đại mới, trong khi cây ô liu là những giá trị văn hóa cổ xưa. Chiếc lexus là toàn cầu hóa, công nghiệp hóa hiện đại hóa, của tự động, của internet và kết nối không dây. Hai giá trị này trước đây mâu thuẫn nhau nhưng cây ô liu dần dần đã bị mai một đi. Quá trình hiện đại hóa là không thẻ tránh khỏi, nhưng con người vẫn phải bảo tồn những giá trị truyền thống của dân tộc mình, chat room không thể thay thế cho một cuộc gặp gỡ bạn bè, like thả tim không thể thay thể cho một cái ôm thật chặt. Giống như tháp Babel trong kinh thánh, khi tất cả con người trên thế giới này nói chung một ngôn ngữ, có thể kết nối với nhau không còn rào cản nào nữa, thì cũng là lúc Chúa làm cho tháp sụp đổ

Drawing on his experience as a foreign correspondent, Tomas Friedman gives a comprehensive view of the modern worlds state of globalization covering every conceivable angle from multi-national corporate strategy, effects on smaller states as they battle between keeping up with the world and not sacrificing their culture, to how modern capitalism is effected by the integration of state intertwining technology. What I love about Friedman is how unbiased his assessment is. Friedman isn't trying to say whether globalization is "bad" or "good", he's much more interested with journalistically presenting every side of the argument to why and who it works for and to who and why it doesn't.

The book can get a little dense in sections, but Friedman does sprinkle in a lot of life antic-dotes that ground the often dense material and reminds you that the systems of development he's talking about are effecting real human beings.

I found this book to be approachable and intriguing. I would recommend it to anyone, with the small warning that they do need to know what they're getting into, and they are getting into a book with dense political and economic subject matter.

The Lexus and the Olive Tree is an overview of economic globalization in the post-Cold War era. The author is Thomas L.Friedman, who more recently wrote the bestseller The World Is Flat. I haven't read that one yet, but I hope to get to it if my to-read stack ever starts going down.

My copy of Lexus is the 2000 edition. I'm still in the habit of thinking anything from 1999 or later is quite recent-- it's a little jarring to realize that the first edition of this book came out ten years ago. It's very interesting to read a book on global economics and politics that was written before 9/11 (and before the disappearance, in the U.S., of "a substantial budget surplus projected into the new millenium" (450).) Even though it's a bit out of date, however, it's still quite relevant and a very important read.

Friedman pulls in examples from all over the world to illustrate the impacts of "The Electronic Herd," his name for global investors operating primarily through the Internet. In the last section of four, he focuses more exclusively on the United States. The "Lexus," of course, is used throughout the book as a symbol of new technology. The "olive tree" stands for traditional values and cultures, things that are being eroded by globalization.

Friedman believes-- and I agree with him-- that there is no real way to stop globalization short of completely destroying the Internet. The advent of the Internet is constantly lowering intercultural "walls," and the resulting free flow of information is causing deep and far-reaching changes in every culture affected. These changes cannot be reversed; they can only, to some extent, be directed. (As Octavia Butler said (more or less) in Parable of the Talents, "God is change. Shape change. Shape God.")

Part One, "Seeing the System," is an introduction to the idea of globalization. It describes how the Internet and other new technologies have changed the way the global economy works. Part Two, "Plugging into the System," uses a fairly laborious "hardware/OS/software" metaphor to discuss why some countries are adapting better than others to globalization. Friedman believes, and repeats often, that countries no longer have a choice of two (or many) ideologies or political systems, as they did in the Cold War:

"Suddenly, we found ourselves at a remarkable moment in history: For the first time, virtually every country in the world had the same basic hardware-- free-market capitalism. Once that happened, the whole game changed. Countries no longer had to decide which hardware to choose, just how to make the best of the only hardware that seemed to work-- free-market capitalism" (152).

The third and shortest section, "The Backlash Against the System," is fairly self-explanatory: In a high-paced, free-market capitalist system, obviously a lot of toes are stepped on and a lot of the old safety nets are eroded. People get mad. This section begins by discussing antiglobalist terrorism of various flavors, then moves on to "The Groundswell (Or the Backlash Against the Backlash," in Chapter 16. Essentially: "Things are different now. Some people don't like it. Most people do."

Part Four is called "America and the System." In Chapter 17, "Rational Exuberance," Friedman argues that the USA is so well suited to surviving in a global economy that it might have been custom-designed for the job. He cites the prevalence of venture capitalism, our historic acceptance of immigrants (new ideas, new energy, etc.), and the ease with which businesses may add or eliminate jobs (we don't really do lifelong contracts, do we?) as factors in our economic flexibility, which he says gave us a head-start in adapting to the new global economy. "And if post-communist societies have learned anything in these past ten years, it is that the rule of law is the foundation on which all of America's prosperity is built. As Russia, most of all, has discovered, no prosperity is sustainable without it" (374).

Friedman is obviously a patriot, and that's certainly laudable. He's also religious, and that's great. I just wish he could have kept his non-economic opinions out of a non-fiction book about the economy. In the last chapter, "There is a Way Forward," Friedman begins with a very good discussion of how America should adapt to thrive in the new, high-paced global economy. Then, in the last eight pages, he decides that this already-enormous treatise just won't be complete without his two cents on religion and ethics in the global age. Pages 468-470 are all about how to stay moral in an age where almost any kind of information and entertainment is available online. Friedman, who is Jewish, takes a moment to advocate for godly behavior online: "We are responsible for making God's presence manifest by what we do." This is a great sentiment, don't get me wrong, but I found it very jarring in what I thought was an economics text. The remainder of the chapter finishes in the same vein. I can only guess that Friedman, having spent most of the book discussing the coming of the Lexus and the great changes it's wrought upon the world, has decided to finish by imploring us not to destroy our olive trees.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Lexus and the Olive Tree, and I think reading it has been a valuable experience for me. I wish that it had been a slightly easier read, or a little less tinged with authorial opinion (Friedman, for example, is horrified by the loss of traditional cultures. He seems to think, for example, that Japanese people should still spend most of their time wearing kimonos and eating sushi, rather than allow themselves to be so tainted by outside cultural influences that they come to accept McDonald's as part of their own culture. I agree that the erasure or blending of traditional cultures is very sad, and that steps should be taken to preserve at least the memory of as many endangered cultures and languages as possible. I think, however, that it's a little arrogant of Friedman to pass judgement on people for choosing to reject some of their olive trees in favor of American-flavored modernization-- it is, after all, exactly what America has done throughout its entire history.) The book is very heavy with anecdotes and extended metaphors. They help to make it approachable, but also help to make it a very long read. I also wish that Friedman had exercised a bit of restraint in constructing about half of his sentences. He tends to run on and on, giving the book a "conversational" rhythm that is at times extremely difficult to follow.

In spite of all that, The Lexus and the Olive Tree is a very important read for anyone who wants to know why things work the way they do in the age of the Internet. I'd definitely recommend it, and I imagine I'll be returning to it several times in the future. When I have time, I'm looking forward to reading some of the author's other work. Thanks for reading. : )

I was quite surprised to see most of the negative reviews for this book as I personally have found it to be very entertaining. But I do understand that going with some expectations into the book and on top of that the length of the book itself might be the reason the book is getting so much backlash.

What I liked is the perspective the book provides. Are some parts stretched out? Yes. But the stories, which Friedman shares with the reader are entertaining enough to keep on reading. While the book itself might lack some straight structure, it is in no need of one. There is no chronological order of the stories or events (or maybe I have overseen this feature) but that keeps the reader, at least in my opinion engaged.

I didn't find Friedman to be "all for globalization" in this work. Maybe in some other, but not this one. At least in my opinion the book keeps this middle ground. It talks about the positives of globalism but the reader quickly realizes the disadvantages also. The country might have new goods but it has to give up its identity in the process. Friedman doesn't explicitly say this maybe, but that does not mean the book doesn't carry this meaning. Or maybe just for me.

I picked up this book totally by random. I was looking for something to read during the quarantine and without previous knowledge of the author or of the work and what it is supposed to be about, I just decided to read it and it kept me entertained and informed. The book is outdated, but it is still a nice time capsule into the past and provides the reader with the option to reflect on how much have things changed.

Would recommend it to anyone.

Published in 1999, some references in the book are dated. That said, it is extraordinarily prescient and well worth reading (or re-reading) today. An excellent analysis of globalization and its impact on our world, and a stunning warning about those who "offer various protectionist, populist solutions" and "claim that by just putting up a few new walls here and there everything will be fine."

For the lay person this was a very instructional book. I learned about 'globalization' and the factors involved for all countries of the world. The impact of globalization on all aspects of a society. As the timeline moves through the 1990's, I am wondering about the impact of the USA's last 4 years under the Trump administration. The influence of the USA over those last 4 years has not been that guiding light on the hill, that Thomas L. Friedman refers.

The concept is philosophically sound that a global economy that is spinning fast and in control can be countered with one’s sense of belonging to a community.

There are caveats and this now outdated tome gives plenty nonstop.

I felt it was my duty as an econ nerd and (newly!) certified economics teacher to see what Thomas Friedman is all about. From his New York Times column to the Sunday morning political talk shows, to documentaries, Friedman was everywhere I turned, and I knew nothing about him.

Friedman, it turns out, is both a brilliant scholar of the globalization wave that is quickly sweeping across the globe; he is also the system's main cheerleader. He describes the new world order all the way from a birds-eye view of the planet down to two customers interacting on the street. Impressive writing, and highly recommended as a primer on the topic. He's got the chops to back up all the buzz.

That being said, I gave The Lexus and the Olive Tree four stars for a reason. This book was originally written in the late nineties, with the "newly updated and expanded edition" I own coming out around the end of 2000. The "fast world" Friedman talks about so often in his book has ironically turned against him by prematurely aging his book. While the underlying theories are still sound, it's lost it's edge a little bit. Friedman believed that by now we'd all be surfing the internet...on our pagers. He also brags about his PC equipped with the latest technology: A Pentium II processor (max speed: 0.45 GHz) and the latest operating system: Windows 98. Whoa. Some of Friedman's guesses sound remarkably familiar. Phones we can send messages on make me think of text messages and reading e-mail on BlackBerries.

This book may be getting a little rusty, but it's still a fascinating, education, mind-blowing ride through the world as it was, the world as it is today, and the world as it might be tomorrow. Final verdict: worth the $15.