Hot, Flat and Crowded
Last fall, I read Flat, Hot and Crowded* by Tom Friedman, which touches on clean energy issues not entirely unrelated to my recent blog series on Dominion*. As it turns out, I just noticed they are even printed by the same publisher.
Below is a summary of the book’s contents:
The world is hot from global warning, flat due to the rise of a global middle class who wants to consume like Americans and crowded because of population explosion.
According to Friedman, America shouldn’t view these three strikes as a crisis, but as opportunities to lead the new “energy industry”, just as it manned the forefront of manufacturing and information ages of the past. The ability to control the cost of power will become the new currency, Friedman predicts. And whoever comes up with the systematic solution to dirty power issues will hold the world’s wealth.
Friedman calls for innovation to point the way to a better future, noting that when the Stone Age moved beyond their limited tools it wasn’t because they ran out of stone. Friedman claims his message bears good news because addressing the energy crises would also make America more fit, healthy, competitive entrepreneurs economically.
A slightly different version of this review, modified for the Religion section of USA Today, touches on spiritual implications. See it here.
*Please see “Shop Local” in the categories at sarahcunningham.org for purchase options.