Freakonomics
abracad, · Categories: books, reviews
You might wonder what a book based on economics and statistics is doing in a Spiritual blog. The answer is that although Freakonomics uses these tools, it's really a book about people and what makes them tick.
Resulting from a collaboration between brilliant but off the wall economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen Dubner, Freakonomics addresses questions such as what real estate agents and the Ku Klux Klan have in common, why most drug dealers live with their mothers, and how your name affects your likelihood of success. Often revealing surprising answers.
Full of fascinating and insightful analysis, for me the most thought-provoking and controversial piece was the explanation given for America's faling crime rate. The reason given was the legalization of abortion some years earlier and the fact that mny o those most likely to be the criminals of today never got the chance to be born.
Surely there has to be a better way of crime prevention than the pre-birth execution of potential criminals? Surely this knowledge means we can identify those most likely to turn to crime and offer them the chance of a more purposeful existence?
For all students of humanity, and that ought to be all of us, Freakonomics is a must-read.
Leave a Reply