basketball

Walter Lafeber, a noted historian, writes about a parallel between the rise of basketball and the rise of what he calls the "New Global Capitalism." The culmination of this new capitalism is personified in the book with Michael Jordan.

In his discussion of capitalism, the author brings up some examples that point out some of the disadvantages related to capitalism. While we could argue about whether capitalism is good or bad, the author is careful in not really getting into that argument so much as he acts as a cultural critic in how America is not only spreading capitalism around the world (seen by most Americans as good), but also spreading American culture around the world (seen by me at least as not so great).

In one sense, most of the world is by now seeing the effects of American-style imperialism. The book does talk about how some have welcomed this and others have reacted harshly. I think the way that the author sees imperialism here is that America is imposing its culture on other nations. It may be at least somewhat fair to say that the people choose this fate, but economic theory would show otherwise: in a world of large companies and small companies, if a large company decides to compete directly with a small company, the large company will be the most likely winner because it is able to charge lower prices, etc. The same goes for large American companies imposing their business into other nations. Can French cafes compete with McDonalds?

The author also talks about some of Michael Jordan's pitfalls, such as not speaking out against unfair labor practices in Nike factories, or gambling with known criminals. Why did Michael Jordan have such a strong following? Phil Knight himself even observed people bowing down to a life-size statue of Jordan (can we say idolatry?). While Jordan established himself early in his career as someone who "transcends race," his international fame came through an enormous worldwide marketing blitz. While he became known worldwide as an incredible basketball player, the marketing campaign surrounding him made him out to be much more than that. Through it all, Michael Jordan is still human, and so it is, too, that the economic system that brought him fame is built by humans. They both have incredibly strong points, but neither are infallible.

This is not liberal junk. It is merely a book that keeps things in perspective.

In Michael Jordan And The New Global Capitalism, Walter LaFaber uses his ability to research and write about something to express to the readers how important advertising is to any corporation or business. For the Nike Corporation, they partnered up with Michael Jordan and worked out a plan to advertise him and their products through worldwide telecommunications. When Michael Jordan won (which was something he did a lot), the Nike Corporation won too, because everyone wanted to be "like Mike," and the only way to be "like Mike" was to buy his footwear and apparel or other Nike footwear and apparel. This book is a good awakening to anyone interested in how our economy works for big businesses, and its also a good book for anyone interested in basketball and or Michael Jordan. This is a definite must read all in all, because even if you end up not liking this book, you will be better off having read it.

Lafeber really shows you how putting time and effort into something can really take you far in life. I found the book to be very fascinating because it gives all the history of how basketball got started and how MJ and Nike became such powerful household names. This book is a really good read for any MJ fan who wants to learn the whole history behind him. It shows you what global advertising can do to a persons popularity. The bottom line this book is filled with tons of very interesting facts and just tells a good story, so go pick it up as soon as you can.