Tom Friedman explains why our politicians need to reverse the direction taken by Trump. He argues that climate change is not just about the weather. We may already be late in dealing with changes in the weather. Deforestation in the Amazon, for example, may be irreversible. However, there are two other important climate shifts that demand a responsive and prepared government. We live an interdependent world. The failure of one of our friendly states will be harmful to our future. Moreover, the failure of one our rivals may be more dangerous than their success. We also live in world with rapidly changing technology. He describes the rapid changes underway and why it is critical to be on top of those changes. Governing is all about preparing for the climate shifts that are underway and cushioning ourselves from the worse of those climate shifts.
The US has prospered because our government prepared the soil so that the dynamic private sector can prosper and be successful. Governing in the US today is entertainment. It provides fodder for the late night TV shows and cable news shows. Even worse, the Trump administration is cutting investments in science, technology and education that prepared the rich soil that enabled our prosperity. Instead of preparing for the climate shifts that are underway Trump is trying to restore the past. He does not understand the interdependent shift. He believes that we prosper when other nations fail. "America first" is a symptom of that disease. Moreover, we can not make America great again without a government that invests in preparing the soil that will prepare us for the future.
We have all been entertained by the folly in Washington. Friedman argues that we need to get rid of the entertainment and prepare for a rapidly advancing future. Hopefully, some of our politicians who can think beyond the next election will understand Friedman's warning. We did it before. Maybe we can do it again.
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