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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
This book is very interesting, and I do think it's good to read it and understand it. Sowell basically seems to see EVERYTHING through the lens of economics. He seems to grudgingly accept that there are areas that ought to be covered by politics, but he's dismayed that there's no built-in efficiency tools. The same for non-profits. Since I value things that he doesn't seem to value, such as clean water and natural diversity - if they don't have prices in a market, there's no mechanism for them being treated efficiently, so they seem to be inherently objectionable to Sowell - I kept thinking, "But, wait..." while reading. But I do think he's right, we mistakenly embark on things like rent control, or Prop 13 in California, which interfere with market-based decisions in ways that yield undesirable outcomes. If you then read a book by a political scientist, who believes that everything important in the world involves the management of political power, I'm not sure how you will reconcile the 2 perspectives. This book probably would have been better, IMHO, if it had SOME treatment of topics that are important but not in the realm of economics directly. Maybe one of his other books?
informative
medium-paced
I picked this up hoping that I could broaden my understanding of basic economics. My hope was that this would be representative of a non-biased approach to our economy. Instead I found a book with an agenda. I came away with some additional knowledge which was my goal but I had to overlook the authors strategy to “convert” the reader to his way of thinking.
Basic economics, just the facts. You won’t find a clearer or more digestible read to explain how economics work.
This was a truly fantastic book. It is a very thorough, thoughtful, and deep analysis of a topic presented in way that is both consumable and fascinating even if one is not in the field. And while the author has a fairly open right lean, he is so thoughtfully, with very specific and well-laid-out arguments supporting his belief, and with a thorough understanding and addressing of the points of the other side in many cases.
I will say though, in the end I found the book fantastic but was mixed on where I actually agreed or not. For example, the sections on rent control and the housing market in general were fantastic and I was fairly thoroughly on board. In comparison, the section on monopolies was well argued but felt to me to address the issue in a way that effectively presumed them away, and seemed to give no credence to their reality outside situations caused by government control. This seems to me somewhat far fetched, and if I have time I'd like to reread this section to narrow down more exactly where I disagree with the argument as laid out.
In other areas I was a bit more mixed as well, often agreeing and finding deeply useful the broader perspective on economics but in particular cases (e.g. predatory pricing) felt the treatment wandered a bit away from fair. The author was a pains to note that such can neither be proven nor disproven (fair point), but then proceeded to cast such skepticism on the idea being possible to a degree that felt unwarranted based on the evidence he was citing. In both this and the discussion of monopolies I was particularly struck with the sense that the effort/time involved to set up or create a business or situation was simply something he consistently underplayed, and the de facto monopolistic situations that often exist or the effective predatory pricing that can occur by virtue of economies of scale in the age of truly massive corporations on the whole got short schrift. Where I felt something was unfair or incomplete it often tended to be related to this point.
That said, even where I disagreed I learned, and as such would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a profoundly thoughtful, well researched and thoughtful description of how economics works from a right-leaning perspective. I might not agree with everything in here, but it seems unquestionable to me that the arguments here are powerful enough to treat with great consideration even when the conclusion is to disagree.
I will say though, in the end I found the book fantastic but was mixed on where I actually agreed or not. For example, the sections on rent control and the housing market in general were fantastic and I was fairly thoroughly on board. In comparison, the section on monopolies was well argued but felt to me to address the issue in a way that effectively presumed them away, and seemed to give no credence to their reality outside situations caused by government control. This seems to me somewhat far fetched, and if I have time I'd like to reread this section to narrow down more exactly where I disagree with the argument as laid out.
In other areas I was a bit more mixed as well, often agreeing and finding deeply useful the broader perspective on economics but in particular cases (e.g. predatory pricing) felt the treatment wandered a bit away from fair. The author was a pains to note that such can neither be proven nor disproven (fair point), but then proceeded to cast such skepticism on the idea being possible to a degree that felt unwarranted based on the evidence he was citing. In both this and the discussion of monopolies I was particularly struck with the sense that the effort/time involved to set up or create a business or situation was simply something he consistently underplayed, and the de facto monopolistic situations that often exist or the effective predatory pricing that can occur by virtue of economies of scale in the age of truly massive corporations on the whole got short schrift. Where I felt something was unfair or incomplete it often tended to be related to this point.
That said, even where I disagreed I learned, and as such would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a profoundly thoughtful, well researched and thoughtful description of how economics works from a right-leaning perspective. I might not agree with everything in here, but it seems unquestionable to me that the arguments here are powerful enough to treat with great consideration even when the conclusion is to disagree.
I love this book and Thomas Sowell. Very clear and concise but detailed. I'm very impressed and think after Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt, this is the best economics primer ever. There are no confusing graphs. The concepts are well explained. The examples are appropriate. He's so articulate. I wish I could write like Thomas Sowell.
Outstanding presentation of common-sense economics relayed in layman's terms. The book debunks a lot of common misunderstandings often perpetuated by politicians and the media.
Edit: Upon rereading this book I upped my rating from four stars to five stars. I believe this book should be the standard high school textbook for all economics classes in the country. I also believe that economics should be taught in every high school in the country. What power the American people would have to see through the shenanigans perpetuated by politicians!
Edit: Upon rereading this book I upped my rating from four stars to five stars. I believe this book should be the standard high school textbook for all economics classes in the country. I also believe that economics should be taught in every high school in the country. What power the American people would have to see through the shenanigans perpetuated by politicians!
I've taken an economics class in college and, more recently, read Sowell's Applied Economics, which seems like it covered a lot of the same topics with a bit more interesting analysis. Reading this was beginning to feel redundant.
DNF. Good information but the tone kind of got to me in the end.
informative
slow-paced