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A review by bethgiven
Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World by Fareed Zakaria
4.0
These past twelve months or so, I've spent a lot of time reading; I find myself seeking out the relevant reads (my booklist is heavy on the political and social justice books lately). I heard about this book on NPR, so I decided to check it out. It's a little crazy to think we've been dealing with a pandemic long enough that we can now read published books about that very pandemic, but here we are.
Some will describe this pandemic as a "hinge-point" of history, but the author argues that the pandemic will not reshape our future so much as accelerate it. There are "decades when nothing happens, and weeks when decades happen," and I think we can agree that we've had plenty of decade-long weeks lately.
Here are the ten lessons the author details in the book:
1. BUCKLE UP. We can only have two out of the three characteristics of society: open, fast, and stable. Since we are not going to give up being open and fast, we're not going to have the stability we crave. But while we may not be not stable, we are resilient, and we are capable of learning from our mistakes (the Dust Bowl is as a historical example). We need to prepare for another outbreak, because while outbreaks are inevitable, pandemics are optional.
2. WHAT MATTERS IS NOT THE QUANTITY OF GOVERNMENT BUT THE QUALITY. So often, liberals and conservatives argue about the size of government, particularly in America. But we saw during the pandemic that both liberal and conservative governments were capable of controlling the spread of COVID-19 in their countries. We don't necessarily need more government or less government; we need GOOD government.
3. MARKETS ARE NOT ENOUGH. Even while we praised "essential workers" during the early days of the pandemic, we punished them through our capitalistic habits: poor and marginalized people would suffer the greatest from COVID-19. So many Americans are afraid of socialism, but perhaps integrating a few more socialistic policies (as many European countries do) would be beneficial.
4. PEOPLE NEED TO LISTEN TO THE EXPERTS, AND EXPERTS NEED TO LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE. Somewhere in the middle of this messy pandemic, "trusting your gut" seemed to overrule trusting science and medicine. The people need to learn to trust the experts. And, as part of gaining that trust, the experts need to tell it to us straight. On the flip side, experts need to realize that many less-educated people resent being told what to do, and treat them with empathy rather than disdain. Also: "listening to the experts" includes trusting experts in many fields, not just scientific; we will benefit from the wisdom of economic experts, as well, before we go shutting down businesses.
5. LIFE IS DIGITAL. We have seen a "new normal" emerge this past year: tele-health visits, streaming entertainment, working from home, distance learning. We have seen a blending of home and work life before the pandemic, and they will be even more intertwined in the future.
6. WE ARE SOCIAL ANIMALS. While technology is a wonderful tool, we've also learned that it is not a satisfactory substitute for in-person social interaction. Though large cities were hardest hit in the early stages of the pandemic because of how easily the virus was transmitted, cities will recover from this crisis to be stronger than ever, because cities are a place where social needs are most easily met.
7. INEQUALITIES WILL GET WORSE. While we wanted to think of the pandemic as a great equalizer -- a virus can infect anyone, regardless of class or race -- COVID-19 effected marginalized populations in greater proportion. We continue to see an economic disparity, as well, as big companies got even bigger (e.g. Amazon, Home Depot).
8. GLOBALIZATION IS NOT DEAD. There are some who decry globalization, but it's here to stay. "We are all connected, and no one is in control."
9. THE WORLD IS BIPOLAR. America and China have emerged as the two economic superpowers of the world; other countries don't even come close. We may be entering a "second Cold War" with China, but while tension is inevitable, hostilities are not. We need smart political leadership to manage our relationship with China.
10. SOMETIMES THE GREATEST REALISTS ARE THE IDEALISTS. The pandemic was a global problem that, ironically, prompted nations to turn inward -- but our greatest strength comes when we cooperate with each other. Cooperation is not just the ideal way forward; it's the common-sense answer to our problems. We need to cooperate with one another to solve problems like pandemics and climate change.
---
Overall this book was grim but still optimistic. I did find it a little dry in some places (probably because I am so ignorant regarding foreign policy; I pretty much know nothing about our relationship with China except that Trump spent a lot of time and energy blustering about it, but it turns out that there's actually some reason for attention). On the whole, I feel like I learned a lot from this book, and am feeling cautiously optimistic that we can emerge from our current crisis better for it.
Some will describe this pandemic as a "hinge-point" of history, but the author argues that the pandemic will not reshape our future so much as accelerate it. There are "decades when nothing happens, and weeks when decades happen," and I think we can agree that we've had plenty of decade-long weeks lately.
Here are the ten lessons the author details in the book:
1. BUCKLE UP. We can only have two out of the three characteristics of society: open, fast, and stable. Since we are not going to give up being open and fast, we're not going to have the stability we crave. But while we may not be not stable, we are resilient, and we are capable of learning from our mistakes (the Dust Bowl is as a historical example). We need to prepare for another outbreak, because while outbreaks are inevitable, pandemics are optional.
2. WHAT MATTERS IS NOT THE QUANTITY OF GOVERNMENT BUT THE QUALITY. So often, liberals and conservatives argue about the size of government, particularly in America. But we saw during the pandemic that both liberal and conservative governments were capable of controlling the spread of COVID-19 in their countries. We don't necessarily need more government or less government; we need GOOD government.
3. MARKETS ARE NOT ENOUGH. Even while we praised "essential workers" during the early days of the pandemic, we punished them through our capitalistic habits: poor and marginalized people would suffer the greatest from COVID-19. So many Americans are afraid of socialism, but perhaps integrating a few more socialistic policies (as many European countries do) would be beneficial.
4. PEOPLE NEED TO LISTEN TO THE EXPERTS, AND EXPERTS NEED TO LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE. Somewhere in the middle of this messy pandemic, "trusting your gut" seemed to overrule trusting science and medicine. The people need to learn to trust the experts. And, as part of gaining that trust, the experts need to tell it to us straight. On the flip side, experts need to realize that many less-educated people resent being told what to do, and treat them with empathy rather than disdain. Also: "listening to the experts" includes trusting experts in many fields, not just scientific; we will benefit from the wisdom of economic experts, as well, before we go shutting down businesses.
5. LIFE IS DIGITAL. We have seen a "new normal" emerge this past year: tele-health visits, streaming entertainment, working from home, distance learning. We have seen a blending of home and work life before the pandemic, and they will be even more intertwined in the future.
6. WE ARE SOCIAL ANIMALS. While technology is a wonderful tool, we've also learned that it is not a satisfactory substitute for in-person social interaction. Though large cities were hardest hit in the early stages of the pandemic because of how easily the virus was transmitted, cities will recover from this crisis to be stronger than ever, because cities are a place where social needs are most easily met.
7. INEQUALITIES WILL GET WORSE. While we wanted to think of the pandemic as a great equalizer -- a virus can infect anyone, regardless of class or race -- COVID-19 effected marginalized populations in greater proportion. We continue to see an economic disparity, as well, as big companies got even bigger (e.g. Amazon, Home Depot).
8. GLOBALIZATION IS NOT DEAD. There are some who decry globalization, but it's here to stay. "We are all connected, and no one is in control."
9. THE WORLD IS BIPOLAR. America and China have emerged as the two economic superpowers of the world; other countries don't even come close. We may be entering a "second Cold War" with China, but while tension is inevitable, hostilities are not. We need smart political leadership to manage our relationship with China.
10. SOMETIMES THE GREATEST REALISTS ARE THE IDEALISTS. The pandemic was a global problem that, ironically, prompted nations to turn inward -- but our greatest strength comes when we cooperate with each other. Cooperation is not just the ideal way forward; it's the common-sense answer to our problems. We need to cooperate with one another to solve problems like pandemics and climate change.
---
Overall this book was grim but still optimistic. I did find it a little dry in some places (probably because I am so ignorant regarding foreign policy; I pretty much know nothing about our relationship with China except that Trump spent a lot of time and energy blustering about it, but it turns out that there's actually some reason for attention). On the whole, I feel like I learned a lot from this book, and am feeling cautiously optimistic that we can emerge from our current crisis better for it.