Friedman, Zakaria, and Gergen Converge on SMU Campus for Tate Lecture

Elisabeth Brubaker
ebrubake@smu.edu

A sold-out crowd in McFarlin Auditorium enthusiastically welcomed journalists Thomas Friedman, Fareed Zakaria, and David Gergen on Tuesday to launch the 2009 season of the Tate Lecture Series.

The conversation moderated by Gergen, a political analyst for CNN and editor-at-large of U.S. News & World Report, covered serious topics ranging from America’s “biggest problem” to issues in the Middle East. The three speakers stayed focused and provided the audience with important information while still poking fun at the one another.

America’s Greatest Problem

The largest problem in America, according to Zakaria, is the full-blown partisanship surrounding politics in our country. Zakaria is the editor of Newsweek International and hosts his own show on CNN.

“We have gone from a principle where voters choose the politicians to one where the politicians choose the voters,” Zakaria said.

“It [partisanship] only gets worse over time. This is going to be the cancer and I call it cancer because… we can’t handle a cancer, a slow destruction of your immune system.”

Friedman, a foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times and author of the book, The World is Flat, agreed with Zakaria that “one-party democracy” in America is not getting things done. Recent debates, like whether or not Obama should talk to schoolchildren to tell them to study hard is “sheer lunacy,” Freidman said.

The Next Great Global Industry

Friedman believes the next great global industry will deal with the idea of energy – solar, wind and battery. China, as described by Friedman, is a one-party autocracy. They are increasing energy production because their government is forcing it.

“We can only innovate our way out of this crisis. We can either tell them [our children] they can either work twice as hard like the Chinese or invent twice as fast,” Friedman said.

The War in Afghanistan

Gergen challenged the speakers to discuss what needs to be done and what should be changed in Afghanistan.
Zakaria believes the U.S. should re-strategize the fight in Afghanistan.

“We need to seriously scale back what we think is do able in Afghanistan,” Zakaria said.

He said Afghanistan will be successful when Afghanistan does not have significant Al-Qaeda camps or presence.

Friedman looked at Afghanistan in a different way.

“You’re either in or out,” Friedman said.

He believes the U.S. needs to focus on policy.

“The policy better match the sacrifice,” Friedman said. “And in Iraq, for way to many years, the policy was screwed up, under-planned and under-resourced by people who willed the ends and did not will the means.”

Students Left Impressed

Zakaria’s commentary impressed SMU senior, Jana Martin. She now views Zakaria, “as a fair and balanced journalist,” she said.

“We all should listen to his comment that the ‘U.S. faces a fundamental choice to embrace and accept or deny and defy that China and India’ are quickly becoming leaders of the world.”

SMU Student Body Secretary Peter Goldschmidt said he found the lecture stimulating.

“In his closing remarks, Zakaria used Truman’s Marshall Plan as a prime example of how true bipartisanship can help get goals accomplished.”

Friedman ended the evening with one piece of advice. “Go out of your way to talk to someone you disagree with.”
This not only will broaden one’s horizons, he claimed, but help erase the partisanship both Friedman and Zakaria feel so strongly against.

Zakaria will hold a second student forum in the Hughes-Trigg Theatre Wed. Sept. 9 at 11 a.m.