Globalization: The Challenge To America By Thomas L. Friedman

The development of the definition of illiteracy and what it takes to be literate is ever changing. It used to be that, to be considered illiterate, one did not know how to read or write. Then it became if one did not know how to type or word process. The standards for literacy only rose according to the technological innovations of society; from lead pencils to type writers to (electronic) tablets. However, some seem to question what literacy might mean in this day and age. Futurist Alvin Toffler described literacy as being able to learn, relearn, and unlearn, not only reading and writing. His definition of illiteracy can be construed as being someone who only uses knowledge and their respective tools only as a means to an end. True “literacy”, …show more content…
In Thomas L. Friedman’s article, “Globalization: The Challenge to America”, Friedman says that that America thinks it is still competing against itself in the industrialized world, oblivious to the fact that countries like India and China are catching up in economic terms. In Toffler’s terms, America is slowly being seen as illiterate; while coasting along with no incentive to do better, other countries are innovating and educating their youth at an exponential rate. Shirley Ann- Jackson refers to this as The Quiet Crisis: “If left unchecked, this could challenge our pre-eminence and capacity to innovate.” The erosion of ambition in high school students to strive for more than passing is an ever growing problem that America is facing. To correct their illiteracy, Friedman states that there are three main gaps America needs to learn from: America’s ambition to strive for excellence, the amount of people wanting to do better, and how students are getting their education. In addition to the lax in attitude concerning education in America, the apathy and lack of action with climate change must also be …show more content…
In the article, “The American Interest”, Jamie Horgan described America as enjoying speaking about climate change and raising awareness about its drastic effects, but in the end, America gets tired in the end. According to Toffler, America enjoys going through the motions of being eco-friendly; that’s what makes them illiterate. Americans, based on Toffler’s definition of literacy, need to learn to truly care and be aware of the climates effects. The obliviousness pointed out by Aaron M. McCright in his article “Conservatives Mobilized Effectively to Deny Climate Change” continues to support Toffler’s claim: “The organized climate change denial that we have in the United States simply does not exist in other countries.” To become literate, America needs to reconsider this habit of pushing problems away. Additionally, Algernon Austin added on to the idea of America’s apathy towards the effects of climate change. In African Americans especially, their exposure to pollution from factories and in turn, asthma leads to their wanting the government to take action. However, the solution to most of these problems (new renewable resources) would not benefit the minorities because of the overwhelming costs. This notion of environmental racism is another example of how