[Nyclocal] Newsweek editor's "post-American world"

[Davood Marandi]

*Book of the week*
*The Post-American World
by Fareed Zakaria*
(Norton, $25.95)
http://www.theweekdaily.com/arts_leisure/books/41850/review_of_reviewsbooks.html

Americans shouldn't be gloomy about their nation's declining international
stature, *says* *Newsweek's Fareed Zakaria. T**he rise of China, India,
Russia, and various other economic and cultural rivals may be putting an end
to the United States' nearly 20-year run as the world's unchallenged
hegemon, but this spread of wealth signals a triumph for global capitalism*.
The world that's emerging, in other words, is the world America has always
wanted. In this new era the U.S. can easily manage the threat posed by
terrorism, Zakaria says, and battles over resources and influence need not
arise. *America's proper role, he says, would be akin to that of the
chairman of a board of directors: an indispensible authority who can't play
dictator but "is still a very powerful person."*

Not all foreign-policy experts share the author's sunny outlook, said Ian
Buruma in The New Yorker. In presenting the landscape created by global
capitalism's triumph, Zakaria proves to be "judicious, reasonable, smooth,
intelligent, and a little glib." Like other instinctive internationalists,
he often risks underestimating the influence of fixed hierarchies and tribal
allegiances in human affairs. *He assumes, for instance, that we can work
with Russia and China because both ultimately want to become full
participants in international organizations such as the G-8 and World Trade
Organization. This overlooks two potential deal breakers. First, an
autocratic regime can't adapt to the rules that govern liberal democracies
without surrendering some power. Second, China and Russia might just regard
the international liberal order itself as a form of oppression.*

Zakaria isn't blind to the challenges ahead, said Peter Berkowitz in The New
York Sun. Even as he plays pitchman for America's robust economy, its
peerless universities, and its tradition of attracting and embracing talent
from all over the world, he warns that the United States could squander its
competitive advantages if it restricts trade and immigration. Though *Zakaria
originally supported the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq*, said Brendan Simms in
The Wall Street Journal, he also now prescribes an end to unilateral foreign
adventures. The question of when America should use its power isn't that
easy, though. Sure, we need to become a better team player. But even a
"post-America" world will suffer without "an American willingness to break
the rules in a just cause."
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://spnyc.org/pipermail/nyclocal_spnyc.org/attachments/20080520/6475d302/attachment.html