REVIEW: This book performs a tremendously important task in reviewing and organizing most of teachings found in the public work of Peter Drucker. However, it is not a book for those new to Drucker and it is not aimed at mass market appeal. The author is obviously very knowledgeable about Drucker's work and often adds new insight, but the book has an academic aire and is just plain sterile. The style/tone choosen by the author is an academic one which is totally devoid of the author's personality and opinion. Flaherty wouldn't dare state something that isn't a provable fact. Thus, too many sentences begin with "According to Drucker . . .", or "Drucker maintained . . .", or "Drucker argued . . ." which gets boring quickly and makes for less enjoyable reading.

The book is at its best when it goes beyond organizing the content of Drucker's writings and gives the reader context and additional information. I found this mostly occured in the beginning third of the book when the author injected more of Drucker's personal history and his relationship with others (e.g. Drucker and Sloan). There was just too few of these moments in the book. Despite these limitations, I did find new insights into Drucker. Overall, I'd consider the book an essential for the serious Drucker student only. Others have plenty of other Drucker material to choose from first.

STRENGTHS: A very thorough, analytical look at Drucker's work. I liked the summary list of key concepts ending each chapter. Exhaustively footnoted and indexed. I repeatedly refer to the thorough list of "Published Works of Peter Drucker" at the end of the book.

WEAKNESSES: The book is too academic for my taste. It is totally devoid of the author's opinions and personality. The author has a tendency to use "big" words e.g. "chimerical", "propinquity", "insouciance", "shibboleth", "obsequious") not used by the average person.

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Serious students of Drucker who've already read a number of his works. The casual Drucker reader or reader of mass market management/business books should look elsewhere.

ALSO CONSIDER: "Adventures of a Bystander" by P. Drucker (for an autobiographical-like look at Drucker); "The World According to Peter Drucker" by J Beatty (for a biographical look and an overview of Drucker's thoughts); and "The Essential Drucker" by P. Drucker (for a select sample of Drucker's writings).

[feedback welcome]

Peter Drucker is perhaps the most influential thinker on business and management in the world today, and John E. Flaherty explains why in this in-depth analysis of Drucker's work and ideas. He starts with biographical details and provides a definitive account of Drucker's achievements as a management researcher, thinker, and writer. Flaherty's fascinating book highlights Drucker's contributions to the fields of management and business strategy. Of necessity, the author includes summaries of Drucker's books and quotes from his work. But, reaching a little deeper, Flaherty also shows how Drucker, who began as a social and political theorist, came to create the new academic field of management. Many of Drucker's early ideas are still applicable today, as Flaherty makes abundantly clear in this book, which we [...] strongly recommend to managers of all levels and students of business.

The book came out after Jack Beatty's excellent book, The World According to Peter Drucker. That ordering of publication was fortuitous for the two authors, and for those who will read their books.

Beatty's book works from the level of the detail, exposing critical sections of Drucker's writings that few will have read. Based on that, many (myself included) found new works of Drucker's to examine. As a result, one's knowledge and understanding grew.

Flaherty's book works from the opposite direction. It begins with the themes and works towards the detail. After being immersed in Beatty's detail and intellectual history approach, this book extends your knowledge in another useful way.

He indentifies the six dominating themes as: (1) a systems approach (2) continuity and change (3) challenge of productivity (4) role of the practitioner (5) moral dimension (6) organization of ignorance.

Anyone who is familiar with Drucker's writings will immediately recognize these themes and recall favorite passages and examples. On the other hand, those who are new to the writings will find them helpful to put Drucker's work in context as the work is learned.

One of the things that amazes all those who know Drucker is the astonishing extent of his knowledge and perspective. He is just as likely to use an example from 1215 as one from 1995. He will refer to the evolution of Japanese art as readily as to the divisionalization of General Motors. Professor Flaherty has a wonderful quote from Drucker that explains that perspective. Drucker defines himself as a " . . . social ecologist concerned with man's man-made environment." Does that sound like any other management thinker you have ever met or read?

As Professor Flaherty points out, almost all management writings draw something from Drucker so these themes will also help you to see the Drucker influence in newer books.

More significantly, these themes are also deeply imbedded in the way almost every manager and executive thinks about managerial tasks and responsibilities. So, you can also connect Drucker to your own thinking and proclivities.

After reading this book, you will probably come away with an expanded and more appropriate understanding of the pervasive and defining influence that Professor Peter Ferdinand Drucker has had on us and our world. Our debt to him can never be repaid.

I congratulate Professor Flaherty on the fine job he has done in this important defining work. For future generations yet unborn, this book will become an important primer into the social effects of Peter Drucker's thinking and life. Even he does not realize how pervasive his influence is. What a wonderful tribute for his 90th birthday!

Use this book to consider how you could create more positive influences on the people who come into contact with you, your ideas, and your ideals.

If you have read The Essential Drucker, Balanced scorecard etc. , the book essentially has the same information repeated under a different title. Recommend Essential Drucker, Balanced Score card which is more comprehensive than this title.

This collection of eight articles from the HBR is a must IF AND ONLY IF you want the only highlights of some of the new management tools and theories out there. If you've ever wondered what Activity-Based Costing (ABC) is or what Kaplan's "Balanced Scorecard" is all about, this may be just the introductory text for you. I mention these two tools first since 2 out of 8 articles deal with ABC, either in whole or in part, while another 3 deal specifically with the balanced scorecard. So, if you've got ABC and the balanced scorecard already firmly laid out in your head, this may be a bit redundant.

The remaining three articles are still worth a quick read though. I found in one article, "How the Right Measures Help Teams Excel," ideas that I hadn't seen anywhere else (for example, the team "dashboard"). And, the "How High is Your Return on Management?" article might give managers a moment of reflection on whether or not they have a good ROM and what they can do to improve it.

As I stated before, much of this is merely highlights though. Do not expect to be able to use this book as a primary source to implement any of the measures. It's a tease that gets you excited (at least it did me), but doesn't provide much of a game plan for bringing it all about.

Still, if what you want is a quick overview and a few case studies where these principles and tools have been applied, by all means, read this. It's worth at least that much.

Looking for some informative, original and clear thinking about measuring performance? This book is a great choice! This is a collection of eight outstanding articles selected from past editions of the HBR. The articles cover such subjects as activity-based costing, the use of nonfinancial criteria, and tools executives require to generate the information needed. Each article begins with an executive summary which, for the fast-forward crowd, is a big plus.

So many books are merely ONE GOOD ARTICLE embedded in a thicket of verbiage. Chopping away through such a jungle of verbosity for the gist-of-it-all often proves tedious and disappointing. (Blessed are the laconic!) This book, on the other hand, just serves up a bunch of 'gists' -the pure meat and potatoes of ideas. Happily, the HBSP has published several other collections of this sort on such topics as knowledge management, change, and strategies for growth. Each of these is collection of first-rate 'gists'. Reviewed by Gerry Stern, founder, Stern & Associates, author of Stern's Sourcefinder The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and the Compensation and Benefits SourceFinder.

Even dated there is something to be learned from this book. Drucker is one of the few people who not only talks about the future of business but clarifies the present business climate. Even when he is wrong about what will happen, which he will be one of the first to say, he is smart enough to admit it and learn from it. Drucker gives solid practical advice and insight to all aspects of business. And more importantly what should be part of business. I give the book a B+ on the StuPage just because of it being dated.

Peter Drucker's greatest hits. That's the easiest way to describe this book, which compiles essays written by the ultimate management guru from 1991 to 1994. All of theses essays are about change: changes in the economy, society, business and in organizations in general. Drucker's advice on how managers should adjust to these tectonic shifts centers around the rise of the now ubiquitous knowledge worker and the global economy. As always, Drucker's analysis is far enough ahead of the curve that his 90s-era observations and conclusions are still relevant in the 21st century. We from getAbstract recommend this seamlessly organized book as the perfect introduction to one of the most important management thinkers of his generation.

Peter F. Drucker 1995 book is the expected counter scientific answer for Managers in a Time of great change. To manage complexity properly in all fields we always have had the need of a good theory so that we can make not only predictions but also controling our changing environment. The Drucker`s theory of Business is based on a fundamental schema he also uses in the most original theory of society we have ever heard. Transcending the traditional dualistic paradigm of dividing society into two sectors, the Public sector or Goverment and the Private sector or Business, Drucker propose a threefold schema, which can be very useful among all in, in those countries in which "the social sector" is a political mean to maintain the control of people at any price. In this sense he is completely right when he says that there are not poor countries, but countries bad administrated. The most important thing with Drucker thought is that is consistent, precise and why not scientific. Today when change is a fashion word this book is a great aid for those leaders interested to take their organization into a new stage of mankind.

I appreciate the orderly fashion in which the information is presented. It is refreshing to have a tremendous amount of information organized in such a way that you can tackle it according to your priorities.

I've been a fan of Druckers for many years but did not get around to reading his first book until very recently.

This is not the usual Drucker fare, though fellow readers will recognize his reach and style. In this book Peter Drucker attempts nothing less than to explain what Totalitarianism (particularly Facism and Nazism) are about. And I think he largely succeeds.

But the subject is 60 years ago, so why buy it now? Because the book also explains much of what is going on today. The alienation many of us feel, the deadening effects of globalization on our economic and inner lives is echoed in this book. Why do Palestinians blow themselves up and Austrians and Frenchmen vote for Haider and Le Pen?

Because capitalism fails to satisfy identity and equality needs. Not just income equality but status equality. Many of Drucker's later books attempt to solve some of capitalism's legitimacy and equality deficiencies, but globalism has rolled back much of the progress which has been made.

This relates good basic, but not necessarily obvious rules for getting results. There is some overlap with other Drucker books. But his stuff is worth reading twice, so I'm not complaining. He does seem to contradict himself, however, when he writes that what he's relating can be learned by most anyone. Then elsewhere he relates how "generals" are quite rare, suggesting leaders are born, not made. So, I'm not quite sure what to think of his take on that. But otherwise, he is the management guru of our time, and worth reading.

This book is very unique by its very applicability across businesses and across time. The focus of the book is to explain the economic realities behind business decisions and explain how to go about systematically analyzing your your business result areas, the inferences to draw upon, and the strategies to plan and implement.

The real force of this book becomes apparent by the very applicability of it in today's scenario of great economic and social change. Concepts like the result areas of business, and managing knowledge as the ONLY crucial economic resource of an organization are most relevant today. The book also explicitly details strategies that can be developed depending on each individual organization in times of change.

This book is a great asset to every manager! I recommend it as one of the best and most comprehensive books on business analysis and strategy.

This book is about moving from the first half of life, which is dominated by achieving success, raising a family, etc. to the second half, which is about achieving significance. Bob Bufords book is both thought provoking and was very use to me in my search for what to do with my life as I approach retirement. He really puts life into perspective and asks questions, that when you answer them will help you to plot your course. I particularly resonated to now feeling like I have permission to do what I have a passion for. I am buying a copy of the book for my 22 year old son, and three of my friends that are my age.

Although written from a Christian perspective, this book speaks to everyone -- and conveys a message of great significance about the real choices we face in life and work.

Mr. Buford's book is only the 2nd that I have finished in 15 years. I normally read only articles and summaries. But I am in the halftime of life and the book is a big encouragement to assess my abilities and target their deployment for significant, eternal purposes. The book was recommended by a friend who is a "tentmaker" in Singapore and has already made the switch to significance, leveraging the skills and abilities that God has given him. If you want to make a lasting impact with the second half of your life, this book will nudge you into action!

History still matters. It's best lesson is that we really don't know what is going to happen next. My own attempts to contemplate the kind of secret circus stunts that I have observed have always been extralimital to the presses' goals, but Peter F. Drucker's autobiography, ADVENTURES OF A BYSTANDER, one of the best books I've read, shows how thoroughly someone can describe a fantastic range of people, those who would normally protect their privacy so well that hardly anyone would expect to meet them, even in print. In MANAGING IN THE NEXT SOCIETY, my big surprise was discovering that a modern literary hero, "Franz Kafka also invented the safety helmet. He was the great man in factory inspection and workmen's compensation." (p. 33). Trying to find a place in society, when I know so much by and about Kafka that mental evaluators (I have taken some of their tests) are likely to consider me confused, and my history suggests that I am likely to be grandiose if I try to think at all, this book might not help my future, if the future society is one in which health care has become a top priority, "because health care and education together will be 40 percent of the gross national product within twenty years. Already, they're at least a third." (p. 29). Drucker shows that he is still involved in checking business for some sign of a heartbeat. Thinking that there might be a society some day, but we aren't there yet, sums up the way a lot of people exist.

I continue to be shocked by the inability of people to fathom politics. As someone concerned with financing and management, Drucker is free to report awful experiences whenever a union is involved. Sometimes a union represents the power of people to demand money: "In the early 1950s, President Truman sent me to Brazil to persuade the government there that with the new technology, we could wipe out illiteracy in five years at no cost. The Brazilian teachers' union sabotaged it." (p. 31). In the U.S., unions had so much political power that it is possible for Drucker to report, "Let me say that if we had listened to Mr. Eisenhower, who wanted catastrophic health care for everybody, we would have no health care problems. What shut him down, as you may not have heard, was the UAW. In the 1950s, the only benefit the unions could still promise was company-paid health care. . . . So the UAW killed it with help from the American Medical Association. Still, the AMA wasn't that powerful. The UAW was." (p. 35). If the doctors were willing to take whatever they could get from existing plans instead of trying to figure out how to get any money from the government, you ought to be able to figure out how powerful the government was when Eisenhower (who only wanted to cover "everybody who spent more than 10 percent of their taxable income for health expenditures" p. 35) was president, a real general, compared to the administration of the fly-by fighter pilot who makes the big promises now.

Financially, it seems odd to me that this book is proposing "a service waiting to be born: insurance against the risks of foreign-exchange exposure." (p. 20). Anyone who thought that derivatives might accomplish this ought to keep reading until they get a full history of financial services. "But these financial instruments are not designed to provide a service to customers. They are designed to make the trader's speculations more profitable and at the same time less risky--surely a violation of the basic laws of risk and unlikely to work. . . . as a good many traders have already found out." (p. 140). The historical fluctuation is the least part of the beast in the aggregate of currency markets, but Drucker pictures the situation in miniature: "mostly among the world's huge number of middle-size businesses that suddenly find themselves exposed to a chaotic global economy. No business, except an exceptional very big one, can protect itself against this risk by itself. Only aggregation, which subjects the risks to probability, could do so. . . . Making catastrophic currency risk insurable might similarly make obsolete most of the foreign-exchange business of existing institutions, let alone their frantic currency trading and speculation in derivatives." (p. 146). That was written in 1999. A general decline has probably not calmed the waters much since then, but the question of whose money would be capable of keeping the business world afloat might still be rising. There was a time when money itself might be worth something, back in 1724, when Jonathan Swift had to pretend to be M. B. Drapier to complain that coins of brass were not the same as gold and silver. It has been a long time since anyone could live "in a country where the people of all ranks, parties and denominations are convinced to a man, that the utter undoing of themselves and their posterity forever, will be dated from the admission of that execrable coin; that if it once enters, it can no more be confined to a small or moderate quantity, than the plague can be confined to a few families, and that no equivalent can be given by any earthly power, any more than a dead carcass can be recovered to life by a cordial." (October 13, 1724).

Drucker is politically moderate enough to believe "it is socially and morally unforgivable when managers reap huge profits for themselves but fire workers. As societies, we will pay a heavy price for the contempt this generates among middle managers and workers." (p. 150). Drucker still thinks of society as including some workers, but this seems less likely the older I get, and he is way up there, if age means anything.

REVIEW: Drucker tends to write two types of management books. One type is the more practical/"how-to" type of book where he aims directly at improving the effectiveness of managers of all types through their actions. Such books as "Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices" (1974), "Innovation & Entrepreneurship" (1985), "Managing for Results" (1964), and "The Effective Executive" (1967) fall into this category (all of which are still highly relevant). The second type, while still practical, primarily aims at imparting a broader level of understanding of politics, economy, and society (and their trends) to help executives make effective longer-term decisions and shape the future of their organizations. His typical approach in these books is to bring an historical perspective (over decades or even centuries) into understanding the current trends of human activity that are shaping the future. Drucker's "The Age of Discontinuity" (1969), "Managing in a Time of Great Change" (1995), and "Management Challenges for the 21st Century" (1999) are examples of this type. "Managing in the Next Society" (2002) falls into the second category.

The book is actually a collection of articles that Drucker has published from 1996-2001. The basic theme is that it is not the "New Economy" that executives (and all leaders) should be trying to understand it's the "Next Society". The chapters generally touch upon the three major trends that he's identified as shaping the Next Society: the decline of the young population, the decline of manufacturing, and the emergence of the information revolution.

As he did with his very first book "End of Economic Man" in relation to WWII, Drucker is again reminding us that we must first look to understanding society if we wish to understand major historical events/transitions. This thought is summed up best by the title of a chapter about understanding Japan - "It's the Society, Stupid". While that chapter is limited to Japan, I interpreted the book as telling us that we need to understand society in order to understand all major world events and trends. This is especially important after 9/11 when there's a temptation to look at issues through only political, militaristic, or economic lenses.

STRENGTHS: Since the book consists of articles previously published in magazines from 1996-2001, the text is generally concise, interesting, and easy to read. I also loved the way Drucker brings history into some of the chapters (e.g. he covers Luther, Machiavelli, Hamilton, the industrial revolution, slaves, knights, and inventions such as the book, the stirrup, and the longbow).

WEAKNESSES: The downside of a book of articles is that there is a lot of repetition of concepts and phrases and the book is less cohesive and focussed than it could be. However, I didn't find this too serious of a problem. Also, there are no graphics or charts (it's not Drucker's style).

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Those executives and leaders (whether in business, politics, or non profits) who are responsible for shaping the future of their organizations.

Well, He is the biggest name in clasical management guru, and he has contributed so much for the management. I don't think he will write a real-whole-book again. So we will savour his thoughts in any way we can. This is the past writings on many places colected into a book. It is still very concise, clear and have great insight as usual. There is nothing breakthrough here, but the vast Drucker's fans still can find a lot of insights to think about.

Knowledge Management, published by Harvard Business School Press, is a compilation of articles excerpted from the Harvard Business Review covering a period from 1988-1997. The articles in general focus on the way organizations can acquire, use, and maintain knowledge in order to remain on the cutting edge of their fields. The underlying message of this book, expressed by Peter F. Drucker in "The Coming of the New Organization (page 1)," is that future organizations must take advantage of technology to collect and track data so that data can be translated into useful information.

The manner in which companies acquire knowledge from data can vary. Ikujiro Nonaka in his article "The Knowledge Creating Company (page 21)" provides a general approach. Nonaka suggests that creating new knowledge requires, in addition to the processing of objective information, tapping into the intuitions insights and hunches of individual employees and then making it available for use in the whole organization. Within this framework is an understanding of two types of knowledge: tacit and explicit. Both of these have to exist in an organization and exchange between and within each type is needed for creation of new knowledge. Another point in Nonaka's article is that the creation of new knowledge is not limited to one department or group but can occur at any level. It requires a system that encourages frequent dialogue and communication. Similar but more defined ideas are presented in David Garvin's "Building a Learning Organization (page 47)."

Garvin's approach focuses on the importance of having an organization that learns. Garvin defines a learning organization as one that is "skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge, and at modifying its behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights (page 51)." He describes five activities/skills that are the foundation for learning organizations. These are systematic problem solving, experimentation, and review of past experiences, learning from others, and transferring knowledge.

"Teaching Smart People How to Learn (page 81)" by Chris Argyris, deals with the way individuals within an organization can block the acquisition of new knowledge because of the way they reason about their behavior. In order to foster learning behavior in all employees, an organization must encourage productive reasoning. One caution is that use of productive reasoning can be threatening and actually hampers the process of learning if not implemented throughout the whole organization.

Leonard and Straus in "Putting Your Company's Whole Brain to Work (page 109)," address another way in which knowledge can be acquired. They identify two broad categories: left brained and right brained individuals, with different approaches to the same concept based on cognitive differences. Within these categories, there is great potential for conflict, which can stifle the creative process. However these different perspectives are important for full development of a new concept. Innovative companies should keep a balance of these different personality types to avoid stagnation and to encourage development of new ideas. The management of the cognitive types in a way that is productive for the company occurs through the process of creative abrasion.

One can surmise from the articles in general that data and information are valuable if they can be used to maintain the knowledge base or provide the basis for acquiring new knowledge. The organization that creates new knowledge encourages the following in its employees: creativity, a commitment to the goals of the organization, self-discipline, self-motivation, and individual exploration and identification of behaviors that may be barriers to learning. Cognitive preferences should be recognized and used to the companies' advantage. Finally, companies can learn from the best practices of others and from their customers. After knowledge is acquired, it can be disseminated for use throughout the organization and maintained in different ways.

One key method to maintain knowledge repeated in several articles is the importance of an environment that fosters innovation. Quinn et al, in "Managing Professional Intellect: Making the Most of the Best (page 181)," describe this as creating a culture of self-motivated creativity within an organization. There are several ways to do this: recruitment of the best for that field, forcing intensive early development (exposing new employees early to complex problems they have to solve), increasing professional challenges and rigorous evaluations.

Another way to maintain and use knowledge is through pioneering research, described by Brown in "Research that reinvents the Corporation (page 153)." In this process companies can combine basic research practices, with its new and fresh solutions, and applied research to the company's most pressing problems. Dissemination of new knowledge can occur by letting the employees experience the new innovation and so own it. As mentioned in the article by Nonaka, creation of a model that represents the new information is a way for transfer to the rest of the organization. Also the knowledge from the professional intellect within an organization can be transferred into the organization's systems, databases and operating technologies and so made available to others within the organization. An example of this is Merryl Lynch, which uses a database of regularly updated information to link its 18,000 agents.

Yet another tool for disseminating information within an organization is the learning history, described by Kleiner and Roth in "How to Make Experience Your Company's Best Teacher (page 137)." This makes use of the ages old community practice of storytelling to pass on lessons and traditions. The learning history collects data from a previous experience with insight from different levels of employees involved and puts it together in the form of a story that can be used in discussion groups within the organization. In companies where this has been used, it builds trust, provides an opportunity for collective reflection, and can be an effective way to transfer knowledge from one part of the company to another. In addition, incentives in the form of a report in response to the new innovation and achievement awards encourages employees to learn and helps with the dissemination of information.

Looking for some informative, original and clear thinking about knowledge management? This book is a great choice! In its pages you will find an outstanding collection of articles drawn from past editions of the HBR. The eight articles cover: analysis of a knowledge-creating company; building a learning organization, using experience; teaching people how to learn; and managing professional intellect. Each article begins with an executive summary which, for the fast-forward crowd, is a big plus.

So many books are merely ONE GOOD ARTICLE embedded in a thicket of verbiage. Chopping away through such a jungle of verbosity for the gist-of-it-all often proves tedious and disappointing. (Blessed are the laconic!) This book, on the other hand, just serves up a bunch of 'gists' -the pure meat and potatoes of ideas. Happily, the HBSP has published several other collections of this sort on such topics as leadership, change, and strategies for growth. Each of these is collection of first-rate 'gists'. Reviewed by Gerry Stern, founder, Stern & Associates, author of Stern's Sourcefinder The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and the Compensation and Benefits SourceFinder.

While other facets of managment consulting will ultimately yield to lower-cost technology tools, or consultants, KM shall reign as the ultimate value-added analysis. That was my hypothesis before buying this book, and it has only been proven true. The essays in the book range from esoteric to the executable, and include valuable case studies to punctuate the themes. Knowledge Management means so many things, that it can come to mean nothing. This book does an excellent job of providing some metes and bounds to the topic and to stimulate thinking around important organizational and operational issues.But don't get it and expect to be an "instant expert." This is an overview, albeit an excellent one.

After reading this slim volume, one receives the impression that it was a hurried effort, pieced together from previously published writings, not only of Gilbert Achcar's own work, but also of other writers. That, however, does not dull its message which is to portray the United States as the new Roman Empire, the political and military colossus of the 21st Century, the less than noble giant which can take what it wants from the world at large. And what the latter day Leviathan wants is not justice, nor fairness, demonstrating few of the noble principles which gave it birth.

Mr. Achcar who teaches politics and international relations in France intended this book to counterpoise with Samuel Huntington's better known book, "The Clash of Civilizations". He contends that it is the barbarism of the West which is currently evident in the US which clashes with the barbarism of the East as practiced by Islamic fundamentalists. His conclusion is that Professor Huntington is wrong; cultured societies don't war but barbaric societies do.

In an interesting comparison, Mr. Achcar depicts George W. Bush as a fundamentalist religious leader standing in fierce opposition to Islamic fundamentalists. The inference is that there are religious overtones to a war being planned against Iraq which -- much more likely -- is to control large oil reserves.

One point that the book brings out which is overlooked in mass media reports of the Bush Administration's war against terrorism. It is not true, the author asserts, that Islamists hate the USA for its freedom, for its wealth, for its non-Islamic ways. The US is hated for its uncritical support of international policies which are unfair and do not promote justice -- an antithesis of what the USA preaches. Those critics of the USA find a gross hypocrisy about such stands and they hate the duplicity of it all.

From a reader's point of view, the book was a little hard going at times perhaps because it is a translation, after all, from French. Nevertheless, for those who do not become edgy when learning uncomfortable facts about the most significant issue of this century, this book is recommended.
=pjr=

I had the opportunity to listen to Achcar lecture at La Maison Francaise at NYU, and found his view intriguing, if not entirely acceptable, and certainly worthy of inclusion into a broader worldview. His English is faltering, but the translation is excellent and the book is well structured. Also, the book is about 100 pages long, and I found it an easy read, although not simply written. Reading the book would not take a great amount of time, and it provides a wealth of solid, but little known, historical and political information.

The largest takeaway from his analysis is a more balanced approach to international interactions, and a detailed analysis of the history of the Middle East and Islam, as it relates to political struggles. His analysis is akin to Chomsky's understanding of American political strategy, but also dovetails contrapuntally with more mainstream writers such as Brzezniski.

... I swear to almighty God, if I ever find myself standing face-to-face with ANY of the members of the current administration "serving" our nation in Washington, D.C., I will feel absolutely compelled to ask them the following question: "Are you a HUMAN BEING?!" ... I mean, are these people HUMAN BEINGS, or what?! ... Does ANYBODY out there feel like I do, and EVER question the basic HUMANITY of these characters? I find it UNBELIEVABLE - what these individuals are doing in the name of "serving" their country. If this is SERVING your country, I can HELP MYSELF. Thank you very much!

... Gilbert Achcar has written a masterpiece which serves as a mirror to our nation, staring us in the face. Interesting, how foreigners see us more realistically than we see ourselves. In reading this book, I have come to realize - without a doubt - that what this administration is doing in the name fighting a war on terrorism is exhibiting nothing more than the old saying of: "might is right in the world of greed and lust." ... To all those reading this who disagree, I say: READ THE FOLLOWING THREE PASSAGES FROM THIS BOOK, AND CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE! ...

... From page 37: "The United States is thus directly responsible for the resurgence of anti-Western Islamic fundamentalism. Over the past thirty years this resurgence has flourished in two successive waves. The Iranian revolution marked the climax of the first wave, in the 1970s; September 11 and the shock wave it sent out were the peak of the second wave, dating back to the 1990s. The United States is in fact doubly responsible for them. Not only did it contribute directly to propagating Islamic fundamentalism, but by helping to defeat and crush the Left and progressive nationalism throughout the Islamic world, it freed up the space for political Islam as the only ideological and organizational expression of popular resentment. Popular resentment, like nature, abhors a vacuum. The resurgence of Islamic fundamentalism is not the culturally inevitable form of radicalization in Muslim countries; until recently most people in Muslim countries spurned the ideology. It won only by default, after its competition was eliminated by their common adversary."

... From page 58: "This method of action serves entirely rational ends, contrary to what many would like to believe. Bin Laden hoped to create a situation in which the U.S. population, weary of bearing the brunt of its government's involvement in a part of the world that it has no more interest in than it did in Vietnam thirty years ago, would put pressure on its government to disengage and get out. This is why he directed his warnings, as in his October 7 message, not only to the U.S. government and its Western allies but also to their peoples. He did so even more clearly in his 1998 statements, which called people to attention: "The Western regimes and the government of the United States of America bear the blame for what might happen. If their people do not wish to be harmed inside their very own countries, they should seek to elect governments that are truly representative of them and that can protect their interests." 8 "

... From pages 72 & 73: "Given the scale of the catastrophe that the Bush administration did nothing to prevent, its culpable negligence would have been more than enough to provoke the immediate resignation of any honest, responsible leader. But the very way the 43rd president made his way to the White House, not to speak of the Enron scandal and other events since the elections, showed that Bush is neither honest nor responsible. It is enough to make one marvel at the fact that Bill Clinton's lies in the Lewinsky affair almost drove him to resign or led to his impeachment. The surge in George W. Bush's popularity after September 11 shows that the events' true lessons are still far from having been learned. Indeed, it shows that people in the U.S. have drawn conclusions that are the exact opposite of the right ones. ... So far we have mentioned three factors to explain the origins of the political-religious terrorism targeting the United States: the presence of U.S. troops in the Saudi Kingdom, the Iraq embargo, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We will not dwell further on the way in which the Bush administration deals with these Middle East issues. It is clear enough that it has done nothing until now but throw more oil on the fire, forgetting once more that the United States itself falls within the perimeter of this conflagration."

... Wise words, indeed, that need to be HEEDED before we see even MORE "Blowback" ( as the CIA calls it ) of bad karma generating suffering and destruction onto American civilians right here in our own country! We are NOT immune! We are NOT safe, as Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia so rightly states. ... As the new book, BUSH'S BRAIN, so eloquently attests to, this whole Iraq War comes down to two things: Oil & Israel. ... We need to GO SOLAR as soon as possible! ... YOWZA! - The Aeolian Kid

Anyone familiar with Peter Drucker's writings will probably be disappointed with this book. Drucker is a better and more provocative writer. Anyone not familiar with Drucker's writings probably won't appreciate the Drucker "world" and might even be deterred from reading Drucker himself, which would be a shame. The best part of the book discusses Drucker's relationship with Albert Sloan Jr. at GM. The worst part of the book has to be the irritating manner in which Beatty incorporates quotes and fragments from Drucker's writings. At times, Beatty's only contributions seem to be a horde of "ands," ubiquitous ellipses, and trite summations.

Jack Beatty has taken on a very difficult task here: Capturing the essence of the world's most successful and prolific business thinker and author. I think that he succeeded very well, and certainly added to my understanding of Peter Drucker's writing. Having read many of Drucker's articles and books, I was astonished to find out how many important works I had missed. I appreciate having Jack Beatty open my eyes. In the year since I first read this book, I have read more Drucker than in the last 20 years. This has been a good benefit from THE WORLD ACCORDING TO PETER DRUCKER. I am one of the people mentioned in the book, during the chapter about Professor Drucker's consulting practice, and I found Mr. Beatty has really captured the essence of the man in a way that no other books or articles do. I salute Jack Beatty for having made a great gift to us all, and urge you to buy, read, and use the book to guide your study of Peter Drucker.

In this superb, slim 186-page volume, the author manages to capture the quintessence of Drucker's life-work on management. Drucker's neo-Weberian sociology, the search for the moral basis of capitalism, the influence of Schumpeter (the renegade Austrian economist), the roles of European intellectual currents, his spiritual underpinnings in Kierkegaard, and the social context of Drucker's thought and development--all are ably portrayed here, in all the richness of their context. Penetrating, insightful and never blinded by adulation, the book is also extremely well written. I read a chapter a night and was done inside a week. There are only 2 blemishes. First, he is a bit skimpy on some biographical details (*when* was Drucker born, for example?). Secondly, what in the world does "elide" mean? Here's the sentence: "...Drucker's bold reinvention of government...elides the cardinal difference between government and business...--democratic accountability." You can't even infer the meaning of this strange word from its context. Before I was even finished, I was able to use information in this book to choose (and purchase) 3 other Drucker classics. And excellent, valuable read--don't miss it.