Us vs. Them
The Failure of Globalism
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- £9.99
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- £9.99
Publisher Description
IAN BREMMER WAS NAMED LINKEDIN'S #1 TOP INFLUENCER in 2017
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'Required reading to help repair a world in pieces and build a world at peace'
- António Guterres, United Nations Secretary General
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'Ian Bremmer is provocative, controversial, and always intelligent about the state of the world, which he knows so well'
- Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund
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From Brexit, to Donald Trump, to extremist parties in Europe and the developing world, populism has dominated recent headlines.
But what explains the rise of leaders who stoke nationalist anger in their countries, from Le Pen to Erdogan? How long will the populist wave last? Who will be the winners and losers in this climate, and how can we defend the values of democracy, free trade and international cooperation?
No one is better suited to explore these questions than Ian Bremmer, the CEO of the Eurasia Group and acclaimed Time magazine columnist. Analysing the social, economic and technological forces fuelling this new wave of populism, Bremmer explains why we're witnessing a rejection of the democratic, global, cosmopolitan trends of the late 20th century. Us vs. Them is a definitive guide to navigating the shifting political landscape, for businesses looking to weather and survive the populist storm.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this gimlet-eyed look at current political trends, Eurasia Group president Bremmer (Superpower: Three Choices for America's Role in the World) succinctly explains why people all over the world are turning against their neighbors: they feel powerless, angry, and left behind by globalization. He identifies various reasons for such strife, from increases in industrial automation and the influx of migrants to wealthier countries to a general sense that politicians do not know how to make struggling citizens' lives better. He analyzes the situations of a dozen countries (Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Venezuela, Russia, India, and China among them) in depth and finds common risk factors for the "us versus them" mentality: large youth populations, lack of employment opportunities, and charismatic authoritarian leaders with a knack for pitting groups against one another. These countries, he predicts, will erect physical and technological "walls" to keep people in line, and Europe and the United States will follow suit, becoming more protectionist as the developing world struggles. The author closes with a philosophical chapter on the social contract between governments and their subjects, concluding that the politics of "us versus them" will only get worse before governments change their ways. This astute but not optimistic analysis may be difficult reading for those overwhelmed by the current political climate.
