LE MONDE, MODE D’EMPLOI, Eds Flammarion,  290 pages, 2023.

Jacques Attali, economist and writer, opens his book with a strong statement “We cannot say it enough: economic science is not the instruction manual of the world”. He says that it is sometimes better to rely on “common sense”. Proverbs like “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” are just as useful. The author therefore proposes to ” reveal the world’s instruction manual “.
For the author, everything is taught to us by history, hence his extensive exploration of the historical domain. We start from very far, since he evokes situations dating back 200,000 years! It’s more historical story telling, but it allows you to dream a little. The author introduces two important concepts: the form, which are the territories of the planet subject to the same law of the world; the heart, which is the command center of the form.
The analysis consists of crossing the commandments and the territories. Nine are studied; it is noted that three of the nine hearts are located in the United States. The first concerns Bruges from 1250 to 1348. After the analysis of history, the author brings us back to the present, in 2023. This is a very dense section loaded with statistics. One has the impression of being subjected to an avalanche of figures in all areas. A software like ChatGPT could have facilitated the extraction of these encrypted documents. The picture is quite bleak and analyzes the various crises we are going through: the climate crisis, wars and their nuclear threats. The US/China rivalry is widely documented…
How will we approach the 2050 milestone? What threatens us is the economy of death: the production of fossil fuels, the meat diet, the excessive practice of social networks and video games.
The author encourages us to make predictions. In his 2015 book “Peut-on prévoir l’avenir ?” (Can we predict the future?) (Fayard), he described the process of taking a blank sheet of paper, planning your day, then continuing to broaden your horizons. This method also concerned States, for strategic forecasts. “Forecasting is the best ally of freedom,” he concluded.
Where will the heart be in 2050? In the United States? Perhaps not, because it will no longer be a superpower. In China? It will have to control its declining demographics and solve its ecological problem. In India? It is not impossible.
In conclusion, the author suggests a better situation, if each of us asks the essential questions for a balanced social life. Respect for individual freedoms also requires questioning behaviors that harm our environment. Perhaps a glimmer of hope for future generations …
(review by Renzo Borsato)

(review by Renzo Borsato)