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|  | Author: George Friedman
Publisher: Doubleday
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $14.96
as of 11/22/2009 17:39 CST details
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New (39) Used (9) from $13.96
Seller: zp_books
Rating:  129 reviews
Sales Rank: 1113
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 272
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 038551705X
Dewey Decimal Number: 303.49
EAN: 9780385517058
ASIN: 038551705X
Publication Date: January 27, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: ALL BOOKS ARE BRAND NEW!
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Showing reviews 6-10 of 129
 Fiction not non-fiction October 12, 2009
MN reader (Minneapolis)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Intriguing concepts and detailed analysis yet the conclusions where far too dogmatic and inflexible. Dismissing China and India while asserting that Turkey, Japan and Poland are going to be great powers is quite a stretch. Also, the Star Wars part is way out there. I liked the book at first because it makes you think about geopolitics but struggled to finish it. Many of the main premises were repeated again and again.
 THE NEXT 100 YEARS October 12, 2009
Steven D. Taylor (great falls, montana)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
George Friedman's book is a great read. He assimilates Historical information with current Geographical, economical and political strengths and weaknesses to give a general overview of what will likely take place in the near future. For those who wish a look at past, current, and future world power flows, different from the hyperbole and gossip of our media news reporting, this is a book for you.
Interesting food for thought, but not very logical October 5, 2009
K G R (Arlington, VA USA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Friedman's book is a prediction of what will happen during the remainder of the 21st century. While containing much thought-provoking material, I find that most of it it was too silly or ill-informed to be taken very seriously.
First, like most military-focused strategists/analysts, his lack of knowledge in relevant fields such as business, religion, and overall in science is visible throughout the book. Friedman admits at the end of the book that he knowingly left out any reference to global warming as he feels that humanity will solve the problem before it has any serious impact. The melting of the polar ice cap, rising oceans, and changing agricultural growing seasons have all already begun. To say that a Northeast or Northwest shipping route would have no implications on geopolitics or future military strategy is absurd.
Additionally, he seems to discount the war with Islamic fundamentalists as being a fait accompli because their dream of constructing a global Islamic superstate (a caliphate) has been made impossible. I don't see how anyone who has watched the news at all for the past few years can see the war(s) as having accomplished the stated goals. Additionally, in the likely event of a Western withdrawal from the Islamic world, I don't see how the impact of the fundamentalists on geopolitics can be ignored (as Friedman does). Future terrorist attacks, destabilized middle eastern governments, and failed states simply do not factor into the author's predictions for the next 100 years. Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan all are given shockingly short shrift.
Friedman talks at length about a future Polish superstate, with Central European allies, that will emerge in the near future. In light of the recent decision not to base US missile defense systems in the region, and that the region is experiencing the same demographic problems as Russia that he discusses, I'm very confused as to how/why this will emerge. The future of the European Union is not addressed either.
Friedman also seems to ignore or is oblivious to the global financial crisis. The US and its account deficits and trade imbalances are not discussed. The possibility of creditor nations refusing to buy US debt, the collapse in value of the US dollar, or the failure of US State governments is ignored. While not traditional military foci, the consequences of these actions on the US and its military posture should not have been ignored, as Friedman did. He seems to assume that military spending can remain at today's rates (or higher), in spite of the annually increasing social welfare costs.
I could go on and on about Friedman's callous oversights and other whimsical ideas (Japan building a secret base on the moon to launch rock missiles at US space stations within a few decades?!)
I much preferred Jacques Attali's books on the future. While far less specific, they are much better on focusing on grand trends, not getting into bizarrely specific statements, and hi predictions for the latter part of the 21st century are far more optimistic and realistic.
I recommend this book if you are interested in roleplaying, military strategy exercises and the like, but not if you are seriously interested in a prediction of global events during the rest of this century.
Interesting predictions for the next 100 years, but will ANY of them be right? October 5, 2009
R. J. McCabe (Seattle by way of Arizona - Go Wildcats! Go Huskies!)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Based primarily on the premise that a country's geographical location, features, etc. is essentially what determines it's political & economic power, this book is an interesting read.
I found the first 50 pages that largely brings us up to today's reality to be well presented, and on target. In the case of the US, the fact that we're separated from previous world powers by both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans has served our needs extraordinarily well. In addition, we are now at the center of world commerce with ports on both oceans, and we control the worlds oceans with our navy - all keys to our political and economic power.
The impact of demographics (population busts primarily due to declining fertility rates) gets a big role in the future projections. However, economic power is presumed to belong almost exclusively to the United States because we're currently so far in the lead. This seems (to me) to be precarious given the fact that China basically "owns" our debt, and we basically don't manufacture goods anymore. Granted, if US consumers were to stop purchasing Chinese (and other Asian country's) goods, that picture would change.
Perhaps the biggest issue I have with the book is the assumption that the US's power is just at it's beginning stages. I'd certainly like that to be true, but the tea leaves I read don't necessarily say the same thing. Anyway, the ability of the US to largely "control" world events over the next 100 years based on this large (and apparently increasing in the author's view) economic advantage is key to all the predictions in the book.
IMO, it's the currently "unknown" and "unanticipated" events that will most likely determine where mankind stands 100 years from now. That said, this book is (usually) an interesting take on the future.
A Futurist's view September 22, 2009
R. RYAN (Denver)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Friedman takes a trends-based view of where our world powers will align in the future. His theory revolves around his assessment of cultural maturity: barbaric, civilized or decadent. He bringings new perspective to the discussion of militaristic and capitalistic power though the concept of democracy verses socialistic, communistic or dictatorial states nor the advancement in technology may be naive. I do find it very interesting that Mr. Friedman discounts or ignores the role Israel may play in the delicate balance of power in our world scenario over the next decade.
Showing reviews 6-10 of 129
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