FREAKONOMICS, by Levitt and Dubner

if i told you the reason for the drop in crime was actually the legalization of abortion, you'd be all offended and incredulous. if i told you a gang that deals in crack is set up exactly like corporate america, just like macdonalds, or that the ku klux klan and real estate agents are comparable when viewed from their motives, you would think i was nuttier than the log of poop you flushed this morning.

well, self proclaimed "weakest guy in the world," super nerd steven levitt, can prove it. so, IN YOUR FACE, nay sayers. if nerds were cool, this guy would be brad pitt, johnny depp, and the lead singer of social distortion all rolled up into one. he uses economic principles, tools, and theories to find out what is really going on with things we take for granted or don't even think about.

how about this: all that crap you are doing as a parent is mostly a waste of time, and the little stuff you aren't even thinking about is what is shaping your child. whaddya think about that, smart guy? using alien technology (not really, but it might as well be to me) levitt, an economist who doesn't care about the economy or money or any of that crap, whips up algorithms and other mad science crap like martha stewart whips up sunday brunch, and uses assloads of data to back up his claims. ASSLOADS i tell ya...

the guy either can't write, or has no desire to write, so the book is actually written, or co-written at least, by stephen dubner (a tale of two steves), some new york journalist guy. the book is well and clearly written, entertaining, easily understood by morons like me, and makes me question the current logic about things, like why parents name their kids stupid ass names, and what effect it has on their overall outcome (explained in the book). if more books were written like this, more people would read.

i would definitely recommend this book, in a second, without a thought, to anyone who would listen. you don't' have to like, care about, or understand economics, it has nothing to do with econ at all. it has to do with the world that you deal with every freaking day of your life. the book gets your brain to get off it's ass, take a brisk jog around the park, maybe do a few reps on the lat pulldown machine, and you feel better for it when you are done.