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The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century
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2005
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Historical GeographyTwenty-first CenturyHigh SchoolEducationMedia StudiesSocial SciencesJournalismTom FriedmanCreativityCultural HistoryGeopoliticsCultural GeographyTransnational HistoryGolden Arches TheoryHistorical AnalysisHumanitiesBrief HistoryArtsGlobal ConnectionWorld-systems TheoryModernity
Readers wonder how the author’s talent and creative inspiration arise, noting even a nearby McDonald’s as a possible influence. The author and Tom Friedman share a high school background in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. The first American McDonald’s inspired the author’s famous Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention column.
People always wonder, where does a talent like this come from? They ask, where does he come up with the inspiration for his columns and the titles for his books? Well, it just so happens that, in this case, I know. I have insider information. Tom Friedman and I went to the same high school, St. Louis Park Senior High School, St. Louis Park, Minnesota. I know, for example, that there was a McDonald's directly across the street from our high school. This first franchise McDonald's in America was the inspiration for his widely acclaimed column, The Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention.