The Dell Theory of Conflict Prevention argues that no two countries that are both part of the same global supply chain will ever fight a war as long as they are each part of that supply chain.
When I was growing up, my parents told me, 'Finish your dinner. People in China and India are starving.' I tell my daughters, 'Finish your homework. People in India and China are starving for your job.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of education and hard work by comparing the effort needed to succeed to the struggles faced by those in developing countries.
Thomas Friedman highlights the shift in perspective from a childhood lesson about appreciating food to a vital lesson about the importance of education and readiness in a competitive job market. By referencing starvation in India and China, he illustrates the seriousness of taking advantage of one's educational opportunities, suggesting that diligence is crucial in a global marketplace where many are vying for limited opportunities.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a graduation speech to inspire students to keep learning and growing.
More from Thomas Friedman
All quotes →When it comes to dealing with the world's climate and energy challenges, I have a simple rule: change America, change the world.
The hidden hand of the market will never work without a hidden fist -- McDonald's cannot flourish without McDonnell Douglas, the builder of the F-15. And the hidden fist that keeps the world safe for Silicon Valley's technologies is called the United States Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps.
Do you know what my favorite renewable fuel is? An ecosystem for innovation.
If you don't visit the bad neighborhoods, the bad neighborhoods are going to visit you.
Inspiring conduct has so much more of an impact than coercing it.
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There are three principal means of acquiring knowledge... observation of nature, reflection, and experimentation. Observation collects facts; reflection combines them; experimentation verifies the result of that combination.
I don't think that we are completely dominated by what we have inherited from the past, but it is the case that as far back as you can go - just to Homer, but also to the literature of Rome, the literature of the Middle Ages and Renaissance - what you will find is that women's voices are not taken seriously.
Finally, one just has to shut up, sit down, and write.
Reading is rapture (or if it isn't, I put the book down meaning to go on with it later, and escape out the side door).
Public libraries have been a mainstay of my life. They represent an individual's right to acquire knowledge; they are the sinews that bind civilized societies the world over. Without libraries, I would be a pauper, intellectually and spiritually.
What you look for as a reader is somebody who is going to take you and say, 'C'mon. Come into the story. I'm going to show you what there is to see.' The guide who is going to tell you, 'Pay attention over there,' or, 'Do you remember that other thing? Now watch!'