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  • Wealth, Poverty, and Politics

  • An International Perspective
  • By: Thomas Sowell
  • Narrated by: David Cochran Heath
  • Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (86 ratings)

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Wealth, Poverty, and Politics

By: Thomas Sowell
Narrated by: David Cochran Heath
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Publisher's Summary

In Wealth, Poverty, and Politics, Thomas Sowell, one of the foremost conservative public intellectuals in the country, argues that political and ideological struggles have led to dangerous confusion about income inequality in America. Pundits and politically motivated economists trumpet ambiguous statistics and sensational theories while ignoring the true determinant of income inequality: the production of wealth. We cannot properly understand inequality if we focus exclusively on the distribution of wealth and ignore wealth-production factors such as geography, demography, and culture. Sowell contends that liberals have a particular interest in misreading the data and chastises them for using income inequality as an argument for the welfare state.

Refuting Thomas Piketty, Paul Krugman, and others, Sowell draws on empirical data to show that the inequality is not nearly as extreme or sensational as we have been led to believe. Transcending partisanship through a careful examination of data, Wealth, Poverty, and Politics reveals the truth about the most explosive political issue of our time.

©2015 Thomas Sowell (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

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Brilliant

I am a huge fan of Thomas Sowell. All of his writings are just brilliant. This book certainly challenges the readers views on topics from economics, to welfare, immigration, racial issues etc.

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LOTS OF INTERESTING IDEAS

Lots of interesting ideas which have given me a new lens to think and see things differently.

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A lot to think about

Thomas Sowell challenges every preconceived conception we ever had about race, politics, wealth, poverty, culture, geography, and explains clearly how many of the results that we see are the natural consequence of the different environments we experience and cultivate, rather than one groups malicious attacks on another group, although that dies happen, and it is to everyone's detriment, even the oppressors.
"The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design."

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how bad statistics leads to bad policy

loved the book and it made me rethink my understanding of rich getting richer and poor getting poorer. it is excellent at spelling out how statistics that cover only a small portion of situation will give very different results to those that are detailed and time framed

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clarity and wisdom

a clear and thoughtful dive into important history. sowell is one of our most treasured Intellectuals. thank you

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Excellent

This book is a must if you’ve ever wondered why some countries are richer than others or if you or anyone you thought socialism was a good idea

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Sowell is excellent again

easy to understand for all. engaging and thoughtful. Sowell is great once again. looking forward to the next book.

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Amazing! One of the best books I have heard

An absolute must read! If only this was compulsory reading for high school. Highly recommended

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Very litty indeed

My favourite thing about Sowell's books is how concise he is, almost each sentence is a gem worth remembering on it's own. This is a book that deserves multiple reads/listens through.

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Informative and shocking

I really loved how many preconceptions were just swiftly invalidated, or heavily deconstructed to the point of annihilation. This book is great for those who wish to gain some insight and analytical perspective.

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