It's a Flat World After All--After Thoughts

THOUGHTS:

I enjoyed reading Friedman’s article, “It’s a Flat World After All”, though I honestly cannot say this information is new to me.  I think that every conscious and well-informed American can safely conclude that we have come a long way since the cotton gin and the age of simple machines.  Technology has and will always continue to revolutionize America; the question now is, are we conscious enough to know America is no longer the center of attention or leader when it comes to technology?   I think Freidman’s piece serves as a wake up call to most Americans as they will begin to not only see, but also experience how technology is changing the world.  I personally have enjoyed a life of technological innovations, iphone, Macbook, ipad, SmartBoard etc...but I am more enthusiastic to continue to enjoy a life of technological innovations made possible by this flattening of the world.

The world is no longer flat, not literally of course but figuratively. I completely agree with Freidman in that technology is opening doors and “leveling the playing field”.  Technology is creating and giving opportunities to many of the world’s unaccounted and disregarded geniuses.  Due to social economics status and other debilitating yet contributing factors, many gifted individuals are not able to put their talents to good use.  Instead, their smarts are being wasted away. This is no longer going to be the case.  Think of the world as an open portal with no barriers, a whiz kid in Indian will now be able to compete with his/her equal in the US, Germany, China and the Dominican Republic to name the least. I think this is a great advancement, when most Americans are afraid or even worst unaware of this new change, I say BRING IT ON, for I will reap the rewards.

QUESTION:

After reading Friedman’s piece I wonder, how can we cope with the grim reality that we Americans need to be more conscientious about new age technology? The reason as to why I pose this question is because this article is clearly written for a specific audience. The reality is that most Americans are not thinking about how technology is changing our society and most importantly how technology is bringing competition right to our doorstep.  I do not think it takes a genius to know that this awakening needs to begin in our classrooms.

RECOMMENDATION:

$$$.  In a time where the average American family is facing hard economical times, I think that most us would like to know, how could this flattened world make us money? Can governments invest in new forms of technology and the expertise of foreigners to reel in the big bucks?