| Pulitzer Prize winning foreign affairs columnist, and | | | | into an oasis of democracy is an arrogant |
| author of The Lexus and the Olive Tee, Thomas | | | | (unrealistic and unobtainable) goal that will lead to a |
| L. Friedman, gives insight into the international | | | | vicious cycle of negative expectations regarding |
| system in the world today that has come about | | | | democracy that will determine Iraq's destiny as a |
| as a result of what he calls the Democratization | | | | nation. |
| of Technology, Finance and Information. This new | | | | Democracy emerged in Europe and the United |
| worldwide system is referred to as Globalization. | | | | States during the 1700 and 1800s through a |
| In understanding the new Global system Friedman | | | | developed, shared sense of higher values that I |
| explains that | | | | termed Living Goals. Living Goals aren't governed |
| "Globalization has replaced the Cold War system | | | | by the Laws of Newtonian Mechanics or of |
| with the integration of capital, technology, and | | | | Physics, nor can they be used to calculate, predict |
| information across national borders--uniting Brazilian | | | | or control the future in any specific way. Instead |
| peasants, Indonesian entrepreneurs, Chinese | | | | they are the foundation for a higher, non-linear |
| villagers, and Silicon Valley technocrats in a single | | | | process that allows life to emerge in meaningful, |
| global village." | | | | self-sustaining ways, in a complex world, over |
| Friedman uses the metaphor of the Lexus as a | | | | time. In other words, Living Goals have a life and |
| symbol of modern prosperity and the Olive Tree | | | | a destiny of their own! |
| to symbolize our cultural values that give us a | | | | Globalization is a Living Goal that has a very |
| frame work to live by and understand by. | | | | complex life of its own that we can't control even |
| Referring to the Olive Tree, Friedman takes a | | | | if we wanted to. Why is it a Living Goal? Because |
| pragmatic view of human tribal instincts explaining, | | | | it will bring with it an era of enlightenment born |
| "Whether it be belonging to a family, a | | | | out of a shared desire for freedom (access to |
| community, a tribe, a nation, a religion, or most of | | | | capital, information, and technology) that will |
| all a place called home... We fight so intensely at | | | | transcend national boundaries. This is the passion |
| times over our olive trees because, at their best, | | | | that has the potential to fuel the continued spread |
| they provide the feelings of self-esteem and | | | | of democracy throughout the world, as more and |
| belonging that are as essential for human survival | | | | more countries and individuals begin to see that |
| as food in the belly. (Therefore, Friedman asserts) | | | | they have a stake in the Global system. But this |
| the nation-state will never disappear, even if it | | | | process is not an event one can easily control. It |
| does weaken, because it is the ultimate olive | | | | is more like growing a garden over time, a lot can |
| tree." | | | | go wrong. I can't calculate that by taking a |
| We forget that Democratization is a process. We | | | | tomato out of my beautiful garden and throwing |
| keep looking at democratization as an "event" like | | | | it into my neighbor's yard it will naturally produce a |
| the fall of the Berlin Wall, but it's actually a | | | | beautiful garden there, regardless of how much |
| process that takes time. It is unfair to expect | | | | fertilizer I throw over the fence with it. However, |
| countries (that aren't born out of our history and | | | | because my neighbor will be able to calculate its |
| sense of shared purposes) to suddenly become | | | | trajectory when he kicks the tomato back over |
| democracies because they decide to say they | | | | the fence, I might want to be prepared to duck! |
| are. Or we decide they will be, such as in Iraq. | | | | The point I'm making is there's only so much we |
| This would sound like a plan for failure. In the case | | | | can control! It's arrogant to believe we have |
| of Iraq, I hope they will have the help and support | | | | special powers we just don't have. It's also |
| of a community of nations to restore peace and | | | | arrogant to ignore the power we do have to live |
| create a democratic order. Expecting countries | | | | a purposeful life grounded in Living Goals, and to |
| with traditional governments, however, whose | | | | follow through with specific choices that support |
| goal was formerly to control the economy, to | | | | this a declared higher purpose. But it doesn't make |
| suddenly become Democracies overnight is | | | | sense to start with a specific goal that sounds |
| unrealistic! | | | | good today and assume that later we'll be able to |
| Without continued help by the U.S. and | | | | associate it with a higher law! |
| international support, the lofty goal of turning Iraq | | | | |