That Used to Be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World It Invented and How We Can Come Back
Written by Thomas L. Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum
Narrated by Jason Culp
4/5
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About this audiobook
America is in trouble. We face four major challenges on which our future depends, and we are failing to meet them—and if we delay any longer, soon it will be too late for us to pass along the American dream to future generations.
In That Used to Be Us, Thomas L. Friedman, one of our most influential columnists, and Michael Mandelbaum, one of our leading foreign policy thinkers, offer both a wake-up call and a call to collective action. They analyze the four challenges we face—globalization, the revolution in information technology, the nation's chronic deficits, and our pattern of excessive energy consumption—and spell out what we need to do now to sustain the American dream and preserve American power in the world. They explain how the end of the Cold War blinded the nation to the need to address these issues seriously, and how China's educational successes, industrial might, and technological prowess remind us of the ways in which "that used to be us." They explain how the paralysis of our political system and the erosion of key American values have made it impossible for us to carry out the policies the country urgently needs.
And yet Friedman and Mandelbaum believe that the recovery of American greatness is within reach. They show how America's history, when properly understood, offers a five-part formula for prosperity that will enable us to cope successfully with the challenges we face. They offer vivid profiles of individuals who have not lost sight of the American habits of bold thought and dramatic action. They propose a clear way out of the trap into which the country has fallen, a way that includes the rediscovery of some of our most vital traditions and the creation of a new thirdparty movement to galvanize the country.
That Used to Be Us is both a searching exploration of the American condition today and a rousing manifesto for American renewal.
Thomas L. Friedman
Thomas L. Friedman was UPI's Beirut correspondent from 1979 to 1981. In 1982, he became the New York Times Beirut bureau chief, winning a 1983 Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. In 1984, he moved to Jerusalem as the Times bureau chief, and in 1988 won a second Pulitzer Prize for reporting. He is also the author of the national bestseller The Lexus and the Olive Tree. He was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for his work on this book. He lives in Washington with his family.
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Reviews for That Used to Be Us
79 ratings10 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I first became aware of Thomas Friedman when a New York Times article he wrote came on my google news feed for anything with the title of my book.
The novel I'm currently writing is called 'None of the Above', about an unconventional president. I saw a three page article that felt like a synopsis of my book, saying Thomas Friedman's choice for president is None of the Above. So I researched the author and found this book.
It was weird/exhilarating to read a book with so many of the same thoughts I've had over the last few decades. I've been in tech for 20 years, so I've been familiar with the effects of globalization and hyper connectivity first hand.
One of the things I did learn about was some of the historical context back in the 70s for some of the issues we face today. The book laid out the historical formula for American success in clear terms.
I highly recommend the book. It's not too late to salvage our country, but we're definitely on a downward slope. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Good summary of what's gone wrong and mostly non-partisan in the blame (they rightly key on Republican fiscal myths and failures, but also pull no punches with Democrats weaknesses), though anyone aligning themselves with the "right" would likely see this as "liberal." (Can you tell I'm not a fan of those labels?)
I don't think their proposals as to "how we can come back" are very achievable though. Too idealistic. They do recognize the many reasons why the collective solutions which are needed will fail in the current political culture. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Well thought out overview of the state of our economy and our ability to compete and maintain in the global economy. The authors have several thought provoking observations about how we fell behind and what we need to do to pick ourselves us by the boot straps and get back in the game.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A cogent and impassioned analysis of the dilemmas facing the United States in a globalized world-economy: higher education, globalization, IT, GT (green technology), Deficit/the Debt, Global Warming, and so forth. Covers a lot.
I would have appreciated a more thorough analysis and some more citations and deeper reasoning, but that would have required several more books. Nevertheless, this book diagnoses the problems fairly well - the dispute is on what is to be done. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A fascinating look at how the American Empire has got itself into big trouble and what it might do to recover its former power and glory. Presidential and Congressional elections are tomorrow (2012) and I neither see nor hear much that promises any change that will improve matters. Frankly, I found this volume somewhat depressing because I do not see the will to make the tough changes that are required to improve the situation. You may ask why a Canadian would be so concerned. To paraphrase a former Canadian Prime Minister, when you lay down beside an elephant, you must be careful when it rolls over.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Anybody voting should read this book. Although it doesn't have all the answers, it does ask the key questions that need to be addressed in order for our country to thrive and not just barely survive.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Having not read their previous books I found this book was spot on as to why America seems to be losing ground to other countries in the world. The book is very non partisan but blames the extremes in both parties for much of our current malaise. They believe a third party should emerge based on what they call radical centrism. One that will cut entitlements but at the same time be willing to raise taxes. One theme is the two wars in the middle east were the only two in history that taxes were not raised to pay for them I think this is a must read book and I really can not see why the low rankings to this point. Lots of evidence and logical conclusions for the open minded.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm a fan of Thomas Friedman's work ever since I read his book "The Lexus and the Olive Tree". I felt this most recent offering (produced in corroboration with Michael Mandelbaum) is certainly relevant and made some very strong points about America's current state of affairs. All his works build on each other -- like an on-going textbook with revisions -- so there's a lot of old material presented again. Hence, the highest review I can offer is 4 stars. I wonder if any of our politicians and "leaders" have bothered to examine the conclusions drawn in this work; or if they are strictly focused on their own personal & special interest agendas.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5For the most part I enjoyed this latest book by Thomas Friedman. I think they (he and his co-author) make a very good case for what is wrong with the United States now. They talk about the lack of funding for education and R&D, the media, global warming, the polarization of the political parties and how that came to be and how the United States is competing with the world now on a more and more equal basis.The problem I had with the book was they spent very little time talking about solutions unlike Friedman's book, "Hot, Flat and Crowded" where he spent much of the book talking about very innovative green energy solutions. All in all, though, this is a good read which sums up very well the problems faced in the United States in a centrist way. The authors are quite fair in dishing out blame and despite all the problems they lay out they remain optimistic.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I listened to his “The World Is Flat” and “Hot, Flat & Crowded” and they were great. This one was just as long but did not seem to have anything new to say, although it was sprinkled with some interesting tidbits. Also, not sure how much I believe in their solutions to solve these issues.