The economics and politics of race: An international perspective

Thomas Sowell makes one of the strongest cases against blaming society at large for the outcomes of various groups. He takes the reader through history from the Germans & Irish in America to the Italians in Brazil and shows how their cultural/human capital made a positive/negative impact on those countries as a whole. Group differences are just that and some groups are further behind than others. Sowell is one of the only authors I've read that tackles "differences" with such grace & truth. Other authors like Charles Murray and Arthur Jensen seem to have another agenda their propagating while Sowell sticks to the facts and stresses the fact that culture not biology itself is what allows groups to succeed.Overall, politics has the power to produce programs that are relative to the politicans in power. Human capital is developed through cultural processes that aren't always at the mercy of third party politicians. Sowell also points out that throughout history where ever dominate groups gained power to discriminate they did and were quite effective. However, it was not pervasively effective in the long run. Ex. Much of the Jews wealth was confiscated by the government in Germany however they were able to produce wealth again in other countries they migrated to. Blacks were not allowed to learn how to read at one point in our country however they closed the literacy gap with two centuries.If you'd like to understand what politics can and can't accomplish and its impact on culture and economic outcomes this is an excellent read.

One of the most honest, well written works on race and culture I have ever read. Despite being written in the 80s, the work does not seem outdated in the slightest. In fact, the liberal views on race and ethnicity that Sowell criticizes in the book are more applicable in this decade than ever before. A fantastic read; this book should be mandatory reading for everyone who is remotely interested in culture, history, or the human race.

This book exudes what would be the common sense conclusions of many were the problems discussed not so emotionally charged. I strongly recommend that you read this book if you are interested in social justice. Dr. Sowell earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago, a masters in Economics from Columbia University and a bachelors degree in Economics, magna cum laude from Harvard College. Perhaps because the subject matter is so emotionally charged, Dr. Sowell has a footnote to references for almost every factual assertion. His only conclusions with which I disagree are his views on overpopulation. He looks at overpopulation as a global issue that has economic solutions. I tend to look at overpopulation as a local issue whether it presents itself in a family with 12 children when the family could only support two or three or whether it presents itself in a country like Haiti which does not have the population density of many successful countries, but which none the less can't support its population. Dr. Sowell is probably correct that such countries could maintain their populations with sufficient human and economic capital. The problem is that they don't have what it takes to maintain existing populations and are not likely to get what it takes. Population self restraint is an unlikely but more direct solution. Probably what frustrates those who oppose Dr. Sowell's views is that his facts are well researched and the logic usually irrefutable. Sometimes the truth hurts. If there is any shortcoming in this book it is that he proposes few concrete solutions to the world problems other than suggesting that we look at what has worked for other oppressed people in the world who have succeeded. You cannot read this book without seeing dozens of solutions that are implied but not enunciated. Perhaps this was his intent. I rate this book as one of the best books that I have ever read. I am currently reading a re-release of his book "A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles" which also exhibits a profound insight on human nature. Read this book. You may disagree with many of Dr. Sowell's views, but you will be hard pressed to find good reasons to support your disagreement. If you then want to know why you disagree, read his book A Conflict of Visions.Jim Fuqua

A fun read. This is one of Sowell's early works. You can read the development of his thoughts over the following decade or so with the "Culture" series and other books.

Dr. Sowell is not afraid to take difficult positions on very controversial issues.