Freakonomics What happens when a reasonably intelligent journalist and a completely unconventional economist get together? That would be Freakonomics. For any remotely non-ADD individual, it's easy to finish this in an afternoon, but the thoughts you have about the questions raised tend to stay with you for a while. I think the reason I liked it so much is that every chapter brought about a "duh" moment for me. I am not well-studied enough to articulate all my thoughts on some subjects, but Levitt and Dubner get paid to do the studying for me (although they would likely be the first to point out, since it is a major theme in the book, that I shouldn't let the so-called experts do my thinking for me). Consider the link between Roe vs. Wade and crime rates in the early 90's. Being pro-choice, I definitely feel that women who don't want a baby shouldn't have one. It's bad for the mom, it's bad for the kid, and the authors put some time into research that seems to suggest it's bad for society - the very types of women who were most likely to benefit from Roe seem to be the very type that would tend to have children that grow up to commit crimes. Of course I'm dumbing this down - that's why I think you should read the book. Even if you don't agree with all their analyses, you come away with the sense that life is richer and fuller if you just turn situations on their head and see where that train of thought leads you.

Labels: review

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