Booking Thomas Sowell Oct 9^th

Thomas Sowell is just a fount of misinformation today. We are told that there are bitter disputes between those who blame genetic differences and those who blame discrimination for the economic and other disparities among our groups. Ah, but Sowell has the answer; “that the groups themselves may differ in their orientations, their priorities and in what they are prepared to sacrifice for the sake of other things.” Of course they do, Dr. Sowell; at issue here is why do they differ? Is it because of genetic differences or because of discrimination? There is always the possibility that this is not an “either or” cause but perhaps both make a contribution and perhaps there are other causes as well. The model here is probably not a simple binomial where the cause must be either “A” or “B.”

Dr. Sowell’s column then wanders off in pursuit of issues involving free libraries and the availability of books. He tells us that even in 18^th century Scotland people of modest means had books or they could rent them. He claims that there is no economic determinism; “People chose what to spend their money on, and what to spend their time on. Cultures differ.”

That’s amazing! Unlike most of the poor of that period these fine Scottish folk had sufficient disposable income to consider where they might spend it. In this country during the depression poor people typically spent all they had for necessities; books could not compete with food and warmth. I guess 18^th century Scotland was different. Good for them.

Sowell tells us about two families who took young relatives into their homes to provide them with a good education. One had an IQ of about 130 but the transfer didn’t work. The kids returned to the ghetto. Sowell tells us nothing about the ages of these youngsters; how much contact they continued to have with their former friends or other relevant information. No human resources professional would find this result at all surprising. Sowell apparently does find it surprising.

 Then Sowell claims that. “The youngster with an IQ two standard deviations above the mean will probably never achieve what a Jewish or Asian youngster with an IQ one standard deviation above the mean achieves.” His evidence for this claim isn’t given. Then, just two sentences later he talks about, “…those celebrating the ghetto culture and the cost of being raised in that culture. And they might reconsider what they are hearing from charlatans parading statistical disparities.” 

 Which charlatan are you talking about here Dr. Sowell?