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Review: International Organizations, the G8, the United Nations, and Conflict Prevention

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
AuthorBessma Momani
Published date01 September 2006
Date01 September 2006
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1177/002070200606100322
Subject MatterReview
SUMMER06V.2.qxd | Reviews |
protect the intellectual property generated by horizontal collaboration? And
who will attend to the distributional conflicts generated by greater integra-
tion? Friedman notes these challenges, but says little about them, or about
how the failure to address them could undermine support for economic
interdependence.
Perhaps most glaringly, though, Friedman attributes many problems in
developing nations to “culture” rather than to policy. If a nation’s people value
“hard work, thrift, honesty, patience and tenacity” and are open to change, its
development prospects are brighter (324). But to blame underdevelopment on
culture is to avoid policy and politics. Has China outperformed Mexico
because its citizens have superior values? Or are Mexico’s troubles related to
decades of poorly-chosen economic policies, which benefit elites at the
expense of the poor and middle classes? Friedman suggests that “intangibles”
(330), such as a country’s propensity to dig inside itself for innovation, go a
long way in determining success, but this leaves a great deal unexplained.
Friedman’s book, however, does present to a wider audience many
ideas in contemporary academic literature. These include the link between
natural resources and economic growth, the fact that globalization enables
illegal as well as legal activities, and the potential relationship between eco-
nomic interdependence and conflict. Although Friedman introduces these
ideas without critical examination, his book may provide a useful starting
point for discussing the appropriate paths to global competitiveness.
Layna Mosley/University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
I N T E R N AT I O N A L O R G A N I Z AT I O N S
The Politics and Processes of Global Governance
Margaret P. Karns and Karen A. Mingst
Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2004. xvi, 603pp, US$69.95 cloth (ISBN 1-55587-
987-X), US$32.50 paper (ISBN 1-55587-963-2)
T H E G 8 , T H E U N I T E D N AT I O N S , A N D C O N F L I C T P R E V E N T I O N
Edited by John J. Kirton...

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