the end of the world is just beginning peter zeihan

Instead, the purpose of this book is to lay out what our transition looks like. …The 2020s will see a collapse of consumption and production and investment and trade almost everywhere. Which is a poetic way of saying this era, this world-our world-is doomed. Since 1945 the world has been the best it has ever been. A moment that will certainly not come again in our lifetimes. The period of 1980–2015 in particular has simply been a unique, isolated, blessed moment in time. What you and your parents (and in some cases, grandparents) assumed as the normal, good, and right way of living-that is, the past seven decades or so-is a historic anomaly for the human condition both in strategic and demographic terms. Because the world-our world-is breaking apart. Instead of cheap and better and faster, we’re rapidly transitioning into a world that’s pricier and worse and slower.

A world beginning. Zeihan brings readers along for an illuminating (and a bit terrifying) ride packed with foresight, wit, and his trademark irreverence.The world of the past few decades has been the best it will ever be in our lifetime. Which means everything about our interconnected world - from how we manufacture products, to how we grow food, to how we keep the lights on, to how we shuttle stuff about, to how we pay for it all - is about to change.Ī world ending. The list of countries that make it all work is smaller than you think. In The End of the World is Just the Beginning, author and geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan maps out the next world: a world where countries or regions will have no choice but to make their own goods, grow their own food, secure their own energy, fight their own battles, and do it all with populations that are both shrinking and aging. Billions of people have been fed and educated as the American-led trade system spread across the globe.Īll of this was artificial. American security policy forced warring nations to lay down their arms. Complex, innovative industries were created to satisfy American consumers. Globe-spanning supply chains are only possible with the protection of the U.S. Navy. The American dollar underpins internationalized energy and financial markets. Finally, we reached the point that almost anything you could ever want could be sent to your home within days - even hours - of when you decided you wanted it.Īmerica made that happen, but now America has lost interest in keeping it going. Print The End Of The World Is Just The Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of GlobalizationĢ019 was the last great year for the world economy.įor generations, everything has been getting faster, better, and cheaper.

The end of the world is just beginning peter zeihan