Murk
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Freakonomics
anybody else read this?
i just finished it and it's a very good read.
| Quote: | Economics is not widely considered to be one of the sexier sciences. The annual Nobel Prize winner in that field never receives as much publicity as
his or her compatriots in peace, literature, or physics. But if such slights are based on the notion that economics is dull, or that economists are
concerned only with finance itself, Steven D. Levitt will change some minds.
In Freakonomics (written with Stephen J. Dubner), Levitt argues that many apparent mysteries of everyday life don't need to be so mysterious: they
could be illuminated and made even more fascinating by asking the right questions and drawing connections.
For example, Levitt traces the drop in violent crime rates to a drop in violent criminals and, digging further, to the Roe v. Wade decision that
preempted the existence of some people who would be born to poverty and hardship. Elsewhere, by analyzing data gathered from inner-city Chicago
drug-dealing gangs, Levitt outlines a corporate structure much like McDonald's, where the top bosses make great money while scores of underlings make
something below minimum wage.
And in a section that may alarm or relieve worried parents, Levitt argues that parenting methods don't really matter much and that a backyard swimming
pool is much more dangerous than a gun. These enlightening chapters are separated by effusive passages from Dubner's 2003 profile of Levitt in The New
York Times Magazine, which led to the book being written.
In a book filled with bold logic, such back-patting veers Freakonomics, however briefly, away from what Levitt actually has to say. Although maybe
there's a good economic reason for that too, and we're just not getting it yet. --John Moe --This text refers to the Roughcut edition.
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Freakonomics
this book ruffles many a folk's feathers because it asks the question, "What can be proven?" and holds the answers to that question higher than
conventional wisdom, urban legends, accepted traditional knowledge, received reality and popular opinion.
that in itself makes many people very uncomfortable.
proceed with caution.
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random
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I've read the book. It's entertaining and makes you think a bit, but I feel like they really dumbed down Levitt's work... but Levitt is just as
guilty of missing the obvious as the people he criticizes. Like how he has the part about "Why do crack dealer's live with their mothers?" and asks
why the lowest-level crack dealers would risk their lives to make below minimum wage instead of getting minimum-wage jobs. But if you go to Levitt's
academic paper (and he seems to miss this point), about 50% of the gang members have legitimate jobs (like working in fast-food restaurants) while
only about 40% of the non-gang members have legitimate jobs. What's this mean??? It means the gang members are more likely to be employed in the
legitimate job sector than the rest of their community.
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Murk
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Like how he has the part about "Why do crack dealer's live with their mothers?" and asks why the lowest-level crack dealers would risk their lives
to make below minimum wage instead of getting minimum-wage jobs.
it sounds like you're paraphrasing with slight error.
i don't remember him asking your "2nd question" the way you have it worded.
in fact, in Venkatesh's study, the book flat out says that most of "JT's" foot soldiers had legit jobs, so i'm a bit confused.
But if you go to Levitt's academic paper
can it be viewed online?
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random
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Murk
it sounds like you're paraphrasing with slight error.
i don't remember him asking your "2nd question" the way you have it worded. |
The second one may be paraphrasing, but I think it's fairly accurate. Maybe not from the book, but I've seen a few of Levitt's media interviews and a
few of his lectures where I think he does present the issue that way.
| Quote: |
in fact, in Venkatesh's study, the book flat out says that most of "JT's" foot soldiers had legit jobs, so i'm a bit confused.
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See below.
| Quote: | | Quote: | | But if you go to Levitt's academic paper |
can it be viewed online? |
It's online here
I don't recall the numbers that the book throws out there. From the paper in the link, I double-checked to get these...
On pg 759, 35% unemployed and 40% "not in labor force". For census numbers, unemployed means no job and looking for one, while "not in labor force"
means not looking (if I remember correctly, it's something like 'haven't looked for employment in the last month'). So, of the 60% of the population
in the labor force, 35% are unemployed... that means 21% of the entire population is "unemployed", 39% are "employed", and 60% are "not in labor
force".
On pg 771-772, they (it's actually a paper by Levitt and Venkatesh) say that over the time they have data for, 75-80% of low-level dealers are
employed at some point in legitimate jobs, but they estimate that 40-50% have legitimate jobs at any given time.
If you read the paper and have any questions about the stuff in there, feel free to ask. It's been a while since I've read it, but I should be able
to explain what most of the technical crap means.
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Murk
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| Quote: | Originally posted by random
It's online here |
thanks! 
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upyerbum
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Excellent book, just finished it about 2 months ago. An eye-opener to say the least. The bit about Wade/Rowe and the drop in crime 15-20 years
later...ouch.
Well, its this place where nobody works, and the pigs don\'t give you any shit. Everyone smokes weed and gets drunk all day. Its a place where
cunts like me and you can truly take it easy and relax. Know what I mean?
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clevohardcore
* Kick\'n ass on the wild side *
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When did this come out? The only book I have read on economics was SEX DRUGS AND ECONOMICS by Diane Coyle. Now that was a awsome read.
IF I can still find this in hardcore I will grab it this week.
Each aspect of the soul has it's own part to play, but the ideal is harmonious agreement with reason and control.
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Murk
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| Quote: | Originally posted by clevohardcore
When did this come out? |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freakonomics
it first came out in 2005, then a year later an updated version came out.
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