How the World Ran Out of Everything: Inside the Global Supply Chain

"How the World Ran Out of Everything" (2024) by Peter S. Goodman is interesting, informative and very disturbing. I saw Goodman interviewed on PBS. He seemed smart enough that I got the book. It is about the supply chain. The concept the book teaches is one I sort of knew but had never crystallized: Corporations are run for the investors, the shareholders. Capitalist theory says this will lead to quality goods at low prices for consumers and lead to good pay and conditions for workers, because attracting customers and employees will maximize profit for investors. But this theory of competition does not work in a monopoly or oligopoly situation, where the customers and employees have no choices. The customers must buy from what is available from the oligopoly or not buy that product at all. When the product is the supply chain itself, foregoing the product is virtually impossible. Similarly, workers must work for the pay or conditions offered by the oligopoly or completely change professions; they cannot go to a competitor. All this is made worse in an ethos of deregulation. Regulation was the anecdote when monopolies and consolidation were allowed as the best alternative. But the consistent trend for the past 50 years has been a combination of increased oligopoly and decreased regulation.Just saying this goes a long way to realizing the current problem. But the book does much more. Industry by industry -- shipping, trucking, rail, meat packing -- the book details, with statistics and with stories about individuals, how the consumer and the worker are being intentionally harmed while the profits of the oligopolists and their investor shareholders are soaring. He shows how the supply-chain problems of the pandemic were not problems at all for the oligopolists but instead resulted in record profits for them while at the same time they were blaming so-called shortages that were really created by their own practices or blaming "inflation" that was really created by their own price fixing and were asking the government for subsidies. Of course, some of the oligopolies' profits go to small investors, but the super-rich get the biggest share of it, and the majority of the country get little if any of the profits.Then he describes another kind of huge monopoly: China. The extent to which the USA (and the whole world) relies on Chinese imports is staggering. The inability to decouple is acute. Some efforts are being made after the pandemic to remedy the situation, like increasing chip manufacturing in the USA and shifting supply sources to Mexico, but political and commercial enthusiasm for them is already tapering off. These efforts remedy only a small fraction of the total, and much of the government subsidies given to address the situation end up in the same pockets -- those of oligopolists.While there is much political talk (and some action) directed to the China problem, politicians have little to say (and less to do) about the oligopolies here in the USA. If voters could and would read, they would not put up with this. I highly recommend this book to those who can and do read.

The book captures well the actual story of supply chain disruption and defines well how we all succumb to the pressure of not having our most basic needs fulfilled. However, this book it is truly eye opening to all the underlying reason why we as humans respond to fear and greed. Opportunistic some, not awakened most of us!

This author must be an oracle!!

Couldn't put it down

In addition to describing the shortcomings of supply chain management in the era of Covid, it brings up several issues worth a discussion about business ethics about the drive for perfect efficiency. It's a very accessible read for those without a background in supply chain management. It provides a holistic understanding of business decisions that led to extremes as well as some questionable legislation over the years. Very informative and well written.

Mr. Goodman delivers a very well comprehensive report on what happened with global supply chains from 2020 to 2023. His conclusions, however, were the opposite, seemingly borne from cynical bias. He supposes, for instance, that supply chains can be fixed by regulating greed. He doesn't realise, despite his background in economics, that there are underlying problems in systems & structures. Define the problem and solve it. Blaming people won't get us anywhere. Might as well cry over spilled milk.

I was a little worried a "global supply chain" book would be boring, but nope! Really interesting & compelling characters, well-drawn and fleshed out, going through fascinating difficulties. This is how you write a great story, yeah? By writing characters you care about navigating interesting conflicts. The book tells several great stories that come together in compelling ways. And then on top of it all, after reading these gripping stories that are hard to put down, you come out the other end with a deeper understanding of how this particular part of the world works. And it's a part of the world none of us (certainly I anyway) thought about before Covid, and I for one stopped thinking about after, but it's important! And now I know all about it, and the learning was not just painless, it was enjoyable. I predict a great movie in the style of The Big Short.

As a pretty liberal individual, I honestly couldn’t get get over some of the writing. Pages felt cheap. Arguments came off more emotional than fact/science based. Was really hoping for a good read but a 4000yr world history I read before this kicks the first two chapters of this book bad.