Saturday, July 04, 2009

Hot, Flat and Crowded

On a rainy fourth of July, I finally finished Hot, Flat and Crowded by Thomas Friedman.

I was interested in the book for a couple of reasons. The first reason was that I thoroughly enjoyed reading "The World is Flat". The second reason, and most important one, is that I am a human being that was charged with taking care of this earth by my creator.

I've been trying to be more efficient my whole life and hate the idea of consuming things. It is a vain chasing of the wind.

Thomas brings to light several examples that make you laugh because they are so ridiculous and several examples that make you cry because they are so shameful and embarrassing. As I was carrying this book around for several months, I got lots of polarized comments from people in elevators, people on the beach or wherever else I found myself reading it.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

how about some examples of the emotion evoking book and the evoked people? Just curious.
-Travis

Kevin Eby said...

Here is one example:

In an elevator at the Hilton, an executive-like gentleman (I know I am judging a book by its cover) asked me if I was enjoying the book (with a smile on his face).

After I told him that I was enjoying it, he passionately warned me that I couldn't believe anything Thomas Friedman writes.

My company may have many flaws, but its leadership has consistantly pursued green initiatives. It is disappointing to hear people dismiss information because of the source.

I found it quite ironic that GM and Chrysler were filling the headlines that same week. Energy is not the only reason that GM and Chrysler failed by a long shot, but cheap oil surely delayed the inevitable.