End of the Line. Barry C. Lynn

End of the Line. Barry C. Lynn. The Rise and Coming Fall of the Global Corporation. 2005. ISBN . Point and counterpoint. For an analysis from the other side of the theoretical camp from The World is Flat and the Power of Productivity, comes a surprisingly detailed (for a journalist) review of past, present and potential US foreign policy. The jumping off point is the increasing tightly intertwined global logistical supply chains and the growth of global companies that are no longer vertically integrated like Intel but are the Dells, GE., Cisco Boeing and Wall Mart who no longer build anything but push it onto the backs of suppliers and nation states. Each major icon of industry like Michael Dell, Sam Walton, Jack Welsh and so on is given some credit for leading the US down a rabbit hole of potential doom. But he saves most of his vitriol for Bill Clinton, who is blamed for abandoning policy control, leading to a purely laissez faire attitude toward global companies. The analysis of policy predates the War of Independence and is a fascinating read. Every major author is quoted and plays their part from Coase through to Porter. What gave me cause to read the book is that what he predicts about over reliance on single source suppliers all over the world has caused lots of problems in the technology world and we have all seen it and still do. Thus plus I see still very fragile production systems in countries that we still do not really know their end game but we have certainly seen their mistreatment of their citizens (China) gives me cause to give this a second think. Not a light read, but well written. Might be hard to find!