The End of the World Is Just the Beginning

Mapping the Collapse of Globalization

By: Peter Zeihan

Narrated by: Peter Zeihan

Length: 16 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

2019 was the last great year for the world economy.

For generations, everything has been getting faster, better, and cheaper. Finally, we reached the point that almost anything you could ever want could be sent to your home within days—even hours—of when you decided you wanted it.

America made that happen, but now America has lost interest in keeping it going.

Globe-spanning supply chains are only possible with the protection of the U.S. Navy. The American dollar underpins internationalized energy and financial markets. Complex, innovative industries were created to satisfy American consumers. American security policy forced warring nations to lay down their arms. Billions of people have been fed and educated as the American-led trade system spread across the globe.

All of this was artificial. All this was temporary. All this is ending.

In The End of the World Is Just the Beginning, author and geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan maps out the next world: a world where countries or regions will have no choice but to make their own goods, grow their own food, secure their own energy, fight their own battles, and do it all with populations that are both shrinking and aging.

The list of countries that make it all work is smaller than you think. Which means everything about our interconnected world—from how we manufacture products, to how we grow food, to how we keep the lights on, to how we shuttle stuff about, to how we pay for it all—is about to change.

A world ending. A world beginning. Zeihan brings listeners along for an illuminating (and a bit terrifying) ride packed with foresight, wit, and his trademark irreverence. 

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Peter Zeihan (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

Everyone dies except Americans

Basically a Hollywood style story where everyone dues except US and its neighbors because they are saved by US. I will simply say one thing to trigger your skepticism. He says US population is stable, not aging and will grow when in reality Millennials don't have kids and not even married while zoomers being smallest generation barely have jobs with bad gender relationships. It's fun though to hear him. He uses data in a very straightforward way and still makes bold conclusions without enough data. But whenever we talk about future based on past, it tends to be false.

Tedious…

The author should not have read this. Pronounces words like George W. Bush (think “nucular”) while simultaneously putting down Donald Trump. Bit of a surreal mix. Call me a purist but I like my narrators to have correct pronunciation. “Ekcetera” doesn’t work for me and his nauseating hyper pronunciation of “t’s” borders on the unbearable. Perhaps more relevant are his very confident pronouncements about the radical shape of the future world. It has to make you pause and say how in God’s name does he know what’s coming? Spoiler alert…he has absolutely no idea.

Could have been a 2 hour book

He add so much fluff, better to watch him on YouTube in a 30 minute clip and you pretty much got it all there. Instead he drags it out over 16 hours, bloody painful.

Well constructed big picture

I enjoyed how the major trends were constructed and find myself in agreement. However where I have deeper expertise (agriculture and human and animal nutrition) I found some of the details and forecasts lacking. for example rotational grazing is proven to produce animal protein with many positive environmental impacts. And animal protein as the majority of human calories is critical to adult health and fertility and child development as we are undeniably a carnivore based omnivore. So take the details of these forecasts with a grain of salt, while yielding the value of his macro insights.

Interesting but dramatic

The narrarator has all the drama of telenueva and lingo of an old LA surfer. This lead to the science to be a bit questionable. What's almost as bad is the political opinions by the author. No one needs that and clearly introduces bias from the introduction setting a tone for the rest of the book. But hang in there, it does prove to be informational.

0.8x or 0.9x

Peter’ sarcastic comments and levity makes a complex subject easily digestible.

I usually listen at at least 1.5 most at much faster speed. I am listening at below 1, maybe because I am an American and find this analysis comforting but it just another exceptional book that i want know the arguments thoroughly and maybe yeah I just don’t want it to be over that fast. The first fully narrated book by Peter Zeihan is a plus

A tidal wave of information, done well

Rarely, if ever, are Authors able to narrate their own books well. Peter takes his book to another level. So much of this book’s conclusions are dismal. Peter’s engagingly conversational style makes the audiobook seem like an extended dinner party conversation that goes on for hours. Please pass me another glass of wine. Don’t pass by this purchase. You will enjoy it and be enlightened.

Required Reading!!!!!!

The most eye-opening book you will ever read about how life as we know it is changing forever. You will likely be motivated to make a lot of changes to your stock portfolio, if you have one.

I highly recommend

Have purchased and read all four of Peter's books. This was the best so far.

Thought provoking

Highly recommend this eye popping thought provoking book!
The book is filled with evidences yet easy to understand.

Selling a penny option for a dollar

I probably should explain my 1 star rating.

At first, I found this book interesting, because:
- Surrounded by economic research and data analysis day in and day out, he has a bold statement which is different from any financial professionals I heard of.
- As a Chinese living in Europe (15y+) I hardly come across any vocal, patriotic American. So I am curious. (especially, he predicts that my home country will be gone for good soon)
- He seems to have read a lot, and has some data to back him up. And he presents in a charming way.

However

As I went through Section 1, some of his statements (on history of financial system) are alarmingly biased and wrong.
Then in Section 3, Finance, he blasted out so many wrong statements with no data backing, only misleading narratives. It became a ‘Spot the nonsense’ game for me. (I enjoyed it). The density of biased statements is too high for a ‘book’. It made me I question other parts of the book where I am not an expert. So I stopped reading eventually.

I did learn interesting things from him,and agree with some of his observations. He also pointed me to interesting industry ( transport, energy ) that I never really read on.

But, he sits on one line of a Monte Carlo simulation ( which has so little possibility to happen among thousands of possible future outcome) and write a 16hr audible book to the world and broadcasting as if it is doomed to happen.

It is like selling a penny worth option at a dollar claiming it 100% give you positive return. Not only it’s not decent, you go to jail for it in Financial industry.

So, thank you. But no thank you.

Interesting but flawed

This is a very interesting book forecasting what the author sees as the future based on hard data on things like population, food supply, energy etc. However there are some elements that he takes as a given that are far from certain. His whole premise is underpinned on the idea that American armed forces have patrolled a lawless globe since 1945 to maintain shipping lanes and global supply chains and now America is going to retreat within its borders and let the world descend back into chaos. That is a hugely flawed assumption which he does little to prove beyond he would like that to happen so it will. It will come as news to most of the world that they have been protected by some invisible fleet of American warships keeping the pirate hoards at bay. Nor is there any real sign that America is about to become some sort of hermit nation. Some fringe Republicans like the Author may wish it to happen but wishing is not proof. His constant America will be great because America is exceptional stance is grating and does little to help Americans prepare for the very same crises that the rest of the globe will face. Sometimes he cites a statistic as a weakness for one country and a few pages later basically the same statistic is a strength for America.

That said when you strip away the "Ra Ra America the Great" veneer there is some very interesting, and scary, facts and data in the book. The world is facing massive challenges in energy, climate change, population, political instability etc etc and the author does a good job laying out those challenges and explaining the impending problems. This book will open your eyes on the challenges facing us all over next 20 years. No place will escape them and we all have to work together to find a way through them

arrogant beyond comprehension

The authors arrogance towards all that is not American made me unable to struggle through to the end. And the months between Feb and June make his predictions very suspect indeed.

Read the highlights

far too much repetition and useless detail that only seems to be aimed to highlight the authors knowledge. problem is: using so much detail in a single book means he has to simplify things a lot and skip over rather important bits of history.
combine this with a really arrogant, condescending tone of the authors narration and you have a 14 hour experience that is not worth the purchase.

some of zeihan's points are interesting and well made, but there are a lot of points of speculation as he goes into territories that are not his core expertise. he conveniently leaves things open ended enough so nobody can say he was wrong should things not work out the way he predicts.

some super interesting bits, but overall its really banking on click bait anxiety to make money.

unconvincing arguments

It could pass as deep analysis for a highschool student. I expected much more from this book.

Fascinating read

Hugely interesting volume of work providing a historical and forward looking view on global matters including finance, energy and agriculture. Only slight grumble is the author’s almost giddy perspective in each chapter that the USA is where it’s at, and the rest of the world is almost backward by comparison.

Interesting

This is a riveting read (listen) I host a podcast and on the topic of civilisation collapse I have touched on some of these topics, but in nowhere near the depth that Peter Zeihan has touched on the subjects.

The challenges faced by the modern world are evident to anyone that cares to take a look and the utter mess we’re in is becoming more and more visible to the average person, people like me have been warning about this for ages.

5/5 for this book, dark subject matter told with a humour that is necessary in order to not sound like a doomer and lots of good old fashioned facts to draw upon!

American-centric obsession ruins premise

Listened to author on podcast, felt compelled to assess his full thesis out of grim curiosity.
very interesting content, but author/narrator obsession with American supremecy and their glee at the demise of Asia and Europe is very tiring and eventually I gave up.
Would recommend this book to American preppers, beyond that, avoid - listen to podcasts with author instead, where he is at least challenged on his fetishism for American domination.

Eye opening insight to the future

From the very start Peter’s insight to the future is eye opening. His predictions will make you consider the past, to put the present into perspective and then once you understand how life was, you can see how are future will play out. Fantastic read.

Mind-blowing

This is by far the most informative educative book on world affairs I have read!