As an avid reader of Thomas Friedman's work, I am not surprised by his call for increased levels of education as a solution to a problem. Friedman often claims, as he does in this article, that by raising the level of education in a country, that country will sidestep many serious issues: for example, becoming "an Al Qaeda breeding ground." But one problem I've had with Friedman's proposals in the past, and that crops up again in this article, is that he often fails to provide a wider, implementable plan to achieve his ideal outcomes. Here, he proposes building 50 schools for every Predator missile fired in Yemen, a noteworthy endeavor. However, his assumption is too basic. By assuming that once a widespread "liberal" education system is realized in Yemen that everything else (ie, the economic, the fall in popularity of radicalism, technological advances) will fall into place, Friedman ignores the other factors that must be simultaneously corrected to truly improve the nation’s condition. Providing a certain education is one step, but where does he call for increased trade, rooting out corruption, and reforming government institutions? Asking for America to become less reliant on oil is important, but doesn't cover the whole picture. And people will only be motivated to further their education if they see a realistic opportunity for a better life in their future - not in the current situation, where "300,000 college educated Yemenis are out of work." We have to look to education as a stepping stone to furthering the development of Yemen, not the ultimate medicine.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAs an avid reader of Thomas Friedman's work, I am not surprised by his call for increased levels of education as a solution to a problem. Friedman often claims, as he does in this article, that by raising the level of education in a country, that country will sidestep many serious issues: for example, becoming "an Al Qaeda breeding ground." But one problem I've had with Friedman's proposals in the past, and that crops up again in this article, is that he often fails to provide a wider, implementable plan to achieve his ideal outcomes. Here, he proposes building 50 schools for every Predator missile fired in Yemen, a noteworthy endeavor. However, his assumption is too basic. By assuming that once a widespread "liberal" education system is realized in Yemen that everything else (ie, the economic, the fall in popularity of radicalism, technological advances) will fall into place, Friedman ignores the other factors that must be simultaneously corrected to truly improve the nation’s condition. Providing a certain education is one step, but where does he call for increased trade, rooting out corruption, and reforming government institutions? Asking for America to become less reliant on oil is important, but doesn't cover the whole picture. And people will only be motivated to further their education if they see a realistic opportunity for a better life in their future - not in the current situation, where "300,000 college educated Yemenis are out of work." We have to look to education as a stepping stone to furthering the development of Yemen, not the ultimate medicine.
ReplyDelete