Thomas Friedman Lecture

I must admit that he was pretty entertaining. At one point in the lecture, when he commented that the US was in a perpetual state of election campaigning, the audience started clapping in agreement. He then said half-jokingly, " Don't interrupt me, I am in a groove here!"

Speaking of groove, he said that America has lost its groove after 9/11. Everything seems to be in a mess: healthcare, economy, the war... So his new book is supposed to urge Americans to help America find its groove back.

"Not only is American leadership the key to the healing of the earth; it is also our best strategy for the renewal of America."

That was what put me off when I first read the back cover of the book. How important is American leadership in today's world? And if we talk about being green, Europe and Canada are already way ahead in terms of environmental awareness and recycling. To top it off, America has the highest energy usage per capita in the world. If America intends to be the world's leader, it will be good if she takes a good look at her own backyard first.

Otherwise, the lecture was an insightful one. He pointed out how the level of freedom/democracy of a country can be affected by the price of oil. He was clearly very comfortable as a speaker, pacing around the stage as he rattled off the thoughts in his head.

After the lecture, there was a book-signing session. We brought along our book "The World is Flat" for him to autograph. Security was tight. Lots of people queueing up. But he kept smiling the whole time.

I feel compelled to read his new book now. And re-read The World is Flat. And watch An Inconvenient Truth.

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Another handle of my mug fell off today. :( I am guessing that it was because I did not use Magic Water when I was attaching it on. I usually do it, but for this mug, I though water was good enough since the clay was still wet. Ah well...