Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

HarperCollins Publishers, 2009. Soft cover. As New. 23-16-3. In Excellent Condition. Like New For More Information On Condition. Please See All Photos Which Is More Dangerous, A Gun Or A Swimming Pool? What Do Schoolteachers And Sumo Wrestlers Have In Common? Why Do Drug Dealers Still Live With Their Moms? How Much Do Parents Really Matter? What Kind Of Impact Did Roe V. Wade Have On Violent Crime? Freakonomics Will Literally Redefine The Way We View The Modern World. These May Not Sound Like Typical Questions For An Economist To Ask. But Steven D. Levitt Is Not A Typical Economist. He Is A Much Heralded Scholar Who Studies The Stuff And Riddles Of Everyday Life -- From Cheating And Crime To Sports And Child Rearing -- And Whose Conclusions Regularly Turn The Conventional Wisdom On Its Head. He Usually Begins With A Mountain Of Data And A Simple, Unasked Question. Some Of These Questions Concern Life-And-Death Issues; Others Have An Admittedly Freakish Quality. Thus The New Field Of Study Contained In This Book: Freakonomics. Through Forceful Storytelling And Wry Insight, Levitt And Co-Author Stephen J. Dubner Show That Economics Is, At Root, The Study Of Incentives -- How People Get What They Want, Or Need, Especially When Other People Want Or Need The Same Thing. In Freakonomics, They Set Out To Explore The Hidden Side Of ... Well, Everything. The Inner Workings Of A Crack Gang. The Truth About Real-Estate Agents. The Myths Of Campaign Finance. The Telltale Marks Of A Cheating Schoolteacher. The Secrets Of The Ku Klux Klan. What Unites All These Stories Is A Belief That The Modern World, Despite A Surfeit Of Obfuscation, Complication, And Downright Deceit, Is Not Impenetrable, Is Not Unknowable, And -- If The Right Questions Are Asked -- Is Even More Intriguing Than We Think. All It Takes Is A New Way Of Looking. Steven Levitt, Through Devilishly Clever And Clear-Eyed Thinking, Shows How To See Through All The Clutter. Freakonomics Establishes This Unconventional Premise: If Morality Represents How We Would Like The World To Work, Then Economics Represents How It Actually Does Work. It Is True That Readers Of This Book Will Be Armed With Enough Riddles And Stories To Last A Thousand Cocktail Parties. But Freakonomics Can Provide More Than That. It Will Literally Redefine The Way We View The Modern World. Major Theorists Such As Robert Dahl And Noted Democractic Leaders Such As Former Argentine President Raul Alfonsin Join Forces To Spell Out The Essential Ingredients For Avoiding Disaster In Transitional Periods Of Post-Authoritarian States. This Edited Collection Challenges Some Of The Existing Views About Democratization Around The World And Considers Basic Questions Of Both Praxis And Security. Part Of This Unique Overview Deals With Practical Lessons Learned In Various Countries; Part Focuses On Links Between Democracy And Security. Several Themes Underline The Work. First, That Democracy Cannot Be Made From Above. Second, That The Survival Of Democracy Is Directly Linked To Security Issues. It Becomes Clear That The Future Of Democracy After Authoritarianism May Not Be As Bright As Thought. Excellent Text For Courses In World Politics, Democratic Theory, And Comparative Politics.