| If the thought of a book on economics is about as | | | | statistics from all over the country in comparison with |
| exciting as watching your toenails grow, or you are | | | | abortion statistics in the era after the Supreme |
| under-whelmed with statistics and number crunching | | | | Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, Freakonomics |
| theory, then the bestselling book Freakonomics : A | | | | arrives at a startling conclusion. The book submits |
| Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of | | | | that the highly publicized drop in America's violent |
| Everything just might be the book to make you | | | | crime rate since 1990 is due almost entirely to |
| wake up without that extra cup of Starbucks' best. | | | | legalized abortion, rather than better police work, |
| Actually, Freakonomics is an engaging read because it | | | | new gun laws, or any of a number of other factors |
| seems to be more about sociology and psychology | | | | put forward by agencies of all stripes eager to take |
| than boring numerical analysis. With its well-paced and | | | | credit for it. Although the authors concede they have |
| easy reading style, this book shows how the resulting | | | | "managed to offend just about everyone," from |
| correlation and causality of data impacts our lives and | | | | conservatives, (because "abortion could be construed |
| definitely makes us think differently about facts and | | | | as a crime-fighting tool") to liberals, (because "the |
| figures. The authors, Steven Levitt and Stephen | | | | poor and black women were singled out"), they stick |
| Dubner, contend, "What this book is about is stripping | | | | strictly to the evidence, admitting that this view |
| a layer or two from modern life and seeing what is | | | | "should not be misinterpreted as either an |
| happening underneath," exposing why conventional | | | | endorsement of abortion or a call for intervention by |
| wisdom is so often wrong. In effect, there are real | | | | the state in the fertility decisions of women." The |
| tangible benefits in thinking laterally. To be sure, their | | | | book verifies its conclusion by consistently dismantling |
| seemingly off-the-wall comparisons are definitely | | | | argument after argument for the other touted |
| attention grabbers. Who would have ever thought to | | | | factors and keeps returning to the cause and effect |
| make the unlikely comparison of teachers and sumo | | | | of evidence at hand. After all, the "truth" as the |
| wrestlers to show that economics is, in essence, the | | | | authors see it, is not always convenient. |
| study of incentives. But for those of you who desire | | | | The other topics explored in Freakonomics, while not |
| a smooth flowing book, with multiple concepts | | | | as controversial, are equally interesting. In fact, some |
| building to an ultimate conclusion, you might be | | | | could be considered amusing. If you are looking to |
| disappointed. Actually, the book presents six wholly | | | | spruce up you intellect for the next cocktail party, or |
| different topics, with no unifying theme. And while | | | | widen your eyes to the world around you, then this |
| Freakonomics does jump seemingly randomly from | | | | book is a necessary read. However, what might be |
| question to question, there are some lessons to be | | | | considered a turnoff by some is the annoying |
| learned. For example, the book demonstrates that | | | | insertion of quotations from external sources about |
| the most obvious reason why something happens is | | | | how innovative or creative the authors are as a |
| not always the real reason. To be sure, sometimes | | | | precursor to every chapter. That being said, it is |
| the real reason doesn't even make the list of | | | | refreshing to have an odd economist, or at least an |
| possibilities. Or, as is often true in the case studies | | | | economist who ask odd questions to tease out the |
| given in Freakonomics, the cause turns out not to be | | | | most fascinating facts concerning the mysteries of |
| the cause at all, but the effect. | | | | the world around us. |
| Perhaps the most hard-hitting and controversial riddle | | | | One word of advice: don't buy this book in |
| tackled by Freakonomics explores the cause of the | | | | paperback. At the list price of $25.00, it rings up at |
| dramatic drop in the U.S. crime rate in the chapter | | | | only 95 cents cheaper than the hardback book, which |
| "Where Have All the Criminals Gone?" The book | | | | is a much more attractive and sturdy volume. Plus, |
| explains that by the 1990s violent crime had grown | | | | because the hardback has been available for much |
| to epic proportions in the United States. Experts | | | | longer, you can actually find the hardback for |
| everywhere, from law enforcement to government | | | | significantly cheaper (more than $7) if you search a |
| agencies could only predict that it would get worse. | | | | few bookstores. |
| The American way had somehow produced and | | | | After almost a year in publication, Freakonomics |
| coined the term "superpredator." "Death by gunfire", | | | | continues to make the bestseller lists, currently |
| intentional and otherwise, had become commonplace. | | | | holding (at the time of writing this review) the much |
| And then, instead of going up, the crime rate | | | | vaunted Amazon #1 seller position. If nothing else, |
| suddenly started to drop profoundly- by over 40 | | | | that is an important statistic to keep in mind. |
| percent in just a few years. By studying crime | | | | |