Uncovering the Causes of Inequality: Thomas Sowell's Discrimination and Disparities

Joseph Myren: AWESOME

Canada on Oct 02, 2023

Lee: This book helped me understand the reasons for entrenched poverty much better. It should be read by any person who is interested in forming policies for solving poverty problems.

Canada on Sep 23, 2023

Alex: :) Great book and it came fast :)

Canada on Aug 22, 2023

Amazon Customer: Magnífico como argumenta contra la imposición de lo políticamente correcto

Spain on Apr 23, 2022

LenZen: An excellent discussion of the misuse of statistics in current political discourse. This book is essential reading for anyone exposed to current political rhetoric which, of course, is everyone. As an added bonus the book is short. This means anyone who reads it will quickly be able to recognize how ubiquitous misleading statements are. Indeed, misleading statements seem to be the rule rather than the exception these days. After reading this book you will likely think "I knew the situation was bad but it is even worse than I imagined!" Indeed, one even gets to the point of looking at a statement by the media or a politician and thinking "what is the worst case scenario that would make the statement technically true when the reality is close to the opposite of the impression trying to be conveyed."

Sowell is excellent at providing examples to show common problems in the presentation of statistics. For instance, crime statistics are often presented as "black people make up 13% of the population but are many times more than 13% of those stopped/arrested/incarcerated. The shows racism at work.". Sowell compares this to concluding that since NBA referees call fouls on black...

United States on Dec 29, 2021

Dave: The thing I've found about reading Sowell, is that I've thought a lot of this stuff myself, but not articulately or coherently, and I certainly couldn't have written it out with the clarity he does. But reading him is like a light going on. I'm not sure he's right about everything, but he seems to be right about a lot: empirical evidence should matter a lot in political decisions, and, as he argues, it does seem to be lacking, especially where it conflicts with liberal expectations.
Read this first for his clarity of expression; this is how I expect a philosopher to write (whether TS is a philosopher or an economist is nit picking), not the hand waving and obscurantism of such much 'academic' output. Then read it for the subtle damning of liberalism as at times intentionally racist, and when not intentionally, then unintentionally so. He really doesn't like minimum wages, not least because he thinks they priced blacks (disproportionately) out of entry level jobs, and led to black unemployment. Finally, read this because, even if you do side with, say, AOC or Bernie Saunders, Sowell puts the opposite case well, and at least you can learn what your opponents really think, and not...

United Kingdom on Apr 17, 2021

Richard Kirk: “Just the facts, ma’am.” That was Joe Friday’s interrogation refrain on Dragnet. The same comment could serve as the sub-title of Thomas Sowell’s recent book, Discrimination and Disparities. Few works focused on politically explosive topics maintain such a consistent focus on empirical evidence while avoiding rhetorical jabs at opponents. On the other hand, empirical evidence cuts deep, especially when critics can’t protest the author’s “nasty” style. As radio talker Larry Elder observes, “Facts are to liberals what kryptonite is to Superman.”
Sowell’s title, if employed by a member of the leftist intelligentsia, would doubtless imply a causal link between statistical disparities and some form of discrimination--usually racial. Sowell, by contrast, marshals an abundance of evidence to show that this automatic assumption isn’t justified. Focusing simply on statistical probabilities, Sowell notes that if five prerequisites are needed for success in a particular field, and if the chances are two out of three that any person will have each characteristic, the chance of possessing all five characteristics is still only one in eight--a calculation that helps...

United States on May 08, 2018