Book Review of “Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World”

Book Review of “Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World”

By Michael Lewis

Review by Jordan Hedberg

---

- Summery of the Book’s Main Points

Causation is a tricky subject for humans. Vast amounts of energy and resources are poured into trying to understand the cause of every societal problem. What causes Cancer? Or the success of Apple Inc? People have an insatiable need to establish a narrative regarding cause and effect. When causation meets complex systems such as the global economy, the causes of an event is often hard to separate from the effects. Michael Lewis attempts to ascertain why the global economy is drowning itself in debt and discovers that individual people and societies are the root cause.

The book takes the reader through many of the key nations that are currently the focus of the European credit crisis and establishes events from a personal perspective. Starting with existing stereotypes, Lewis explores why many generalizations regarding different nationalities exist. Continuing with his journey he explores why certain cultures react differently when faced with insurmountable financial problems. The answers and contradictions that Lewis encounters surprise and baffle him. Striving to understand the issue of debt, banks, and markets, Lewis travels back to the United States to search for the beginnings of traditional “European” issues in America. In the end, he discovers certain truths that most American citizens refuse to accept or simply ignore.

-Thoughts & Rating

During the first few chapters of the book I was concerned that Mr. Lewis was going to only discuss the stereotypical traits of European populations. However, Mr. Lewis begins to reveal his thought process and dives into economic problems from a societal viewpoint. It was interesting to see how he moved about in the different European nations and interactions he was able to schedule. Once again, Lewis shows the reader a point of view not captured by main-stream media.

It is hard for me to voice any criticisms because Mr. Lewis’s message is so powerful. The only part of the book that I wanted more information on was his brief discussion on neurobiology and human interactions regarding society. However, there are plenty of good books regarding behavioral science and neurobiology in relation to society. This book is a must read for everyone because it breaks through the political garbage that fills the media and bookshelves.

5 out of 5

Review of “Why everyone (else) is hypocrite”

Review of “Why everyone (else) is hypocrite”

by Robert Kurzban

Reviewed by Jordan Hedberg

Summary of the Book’s Main Points

Robert Kurzban states in his book that the human mind is a not a singular entity but a collection of different “selfs” each with specific job to perform. To better understand the concept of multiplicity in a single human mind, he borrows a concept from computer science known as a module. Modules are programmes that take in data and perform a specific function based on the data received. Kurzban explains that over the course of evolution, the human brain has developed millions of modules that overlap and often conflict with each other. Although there is a hierarchy of which modules act in certain situations, activation of several modules at the same time with different functions is the source of why humans often contradict themselves.

In Kurzban’s opinion, modularity of the human mind is why a person can clearly desire to lose weight, but when awaking at midnight succumbs to the desire to eat an entire cake. Certain modules in the brain want to be included in human society as a non-obese person but other modules want to store high-density calorie food in the form of fat. The conflict between the two modules appears to others as hypocrisy, even if they suffer from the same inconsistency. Kurzban points out that the human mind is designed to point out hypocrisy in others while simultaneously ignoring hypocrisy within itself.

Throughout the book Kurzban explains why it is often advantageous for the brain to be good at self-deception and the effects of hypocrisy on society. From the standpoint of pure survival and reproduction, hypocrisy modules are beneficial. However, for a semi-rational society supposedly set in the values of liberty, hypocrisy is damaging. Kurzban points out how political topics such as abortion, drugs, and liberty have serious inconsistencies on both sides of the argument. To make the situation worse, the call of hypocrite is often used to bolster the position of one group over another, even though such action is hypocritical. Few know why they take certain positions on a subject, but the belief in true equality is often ignored during the debate.

In the end, Kurban shows that true liberty is beneficial to all humans but our hypocrisy compromises the integrity of a equitable society. Understanding that the human mind has many “selfs” is the first step into understanding and solving many individual and societal problems through modularity.

Rating

I believe that understanding that the human brain is complex and not fully understood makes this book a must read. For too long the power and weakness of humans has been the subject of science, history, and politics. Kurzban attempts to address why humans react to situations from an empirical standpoint and it is refreshing. The only criticism is that it was not advertised that this book addressed more than modularity and applied it to political subjects. I was pleasantly surprised but it would be worthwhile for the publisher to state that this is a semi-political topic book and it might get more attention from the public.

4 ½ out of 5

Wednesday Morning Reads

World markets have rallied on Greek rumors, so lets read something else. 

1. Why it is hard to say no. PBS

2.Iran is playing a tricky oil game. WSJ

3. Zuckerberg loves control Here

Have a great day 

A Brief History of Greece

A short part of my newsletter regarding the European Crisis. If you would like more information please contact me to subscribe. Enjoy.

Geopolitics of Greece

Greece has defaulted on its national debt five times since it won its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1828. This long history of financial trouble has two main elements: Greece’s strategic location for foreign powers, and economic stagnation. Both elements stem for Greece’s geography and will continue to influence Greece’s role in Europe.

Located on the Mediterranean boundary between Europe and Asia, Greece is a nation centered on a mountain covered peninsula with control over the Aegean Islands. This strategic location has long been a battle ground for foreign powers wanting to control the waters of the Mediterranean and Black Seas. The battle for ownership of Greece started when England and other European powers financially supported the Greek rebellion against the Ottoman Empire in the 1820’s. During World War I Britain used Greece to launch several military campaigns against the failing Ottoman Empire. The next world war also saw Greece as the focal point of Axis attention when the combined armies of Italy and Germany invaded and defeated the Greek and Allied forces. Greece suffered terribly under Axis rule and the conclusion of the war found Greece crippled. To stop the spread of Soviet Communism after World War II the United States under the Marshall plan sent supplies and financial aid to the Greek population to help rebuild and stave off Russian attempts to control the country. For the remainder of the Cold War, Greece received significant amounts of financial aid from the United States and NATO to contain communism in Asia.

For its entire modern existence Greece has had a foreign benefactor willing to lend large amounts of money in return for allegiance. With so much money poring into Greece over the last 180 years it might seem surprising that the country has defaulted on its debts five times, but the same geography that made it a natural buffer for foreign powers also prevents economic development. The rough mountains of the Greek mainland and the thousands of small islands in the Aegean Sea increase the cost of infrastructure exponentially. Greece in the past, was able to leverage its strategic position to spend beyond its means by receiving foreign aid, but with the end of the Cold War Greece was no longer needed to contain Russian expansion. The fall of the Soviet Union left Greece without a benefactor for the first time in its modern history.

Your Tuesday Readings

Hope Monday treated eveyone well.

1. Proof that austerity is killing the remains of the Greek economy. WSJ
2. The covert war in Iran. Stratfor 
3. Dose of behavioral science in a fun to read post. YouAreNotSmart

Have a great week

The Triplet of Opacity

I thought I would share one of the cornerstones of my research summed up perfectly by Nassim Taleb in his book, The Black Swan. 

The human mind suffers from three ailments as it comes into contact with history, what I call the triplet of opacity.

They are:

1. the illusion of understanding, or how everyone thinks he knows what is going on in a world that is more complicated (or random) than they realize;
2. the retrospective distortion, or how we can assess matters only after the fact, as if they were in a rearview mirror (history seems clearer and more organized in history books than in empirical reality);
3.and the overvaluation of factual information and the handicapauthoritative and learned people, particularly when they create categories—when they “Platonify.”


Taleb, Nassim Nicholas (2010-05-04). The Black Swan: Second Edition: The Impact of the Highly Improbable: With a new section: "On Robustness and Fragility" (p. 8). Random House Trade Paperbacks. Kindle Edition.

Revision to Corn and Geopolitics

After time to think and having great discussions regarding corn and geopolitics, I am going to add a little to my post.

Demographics of the Population


The old age and bad health of American citizens are a significant cause for current account deficient in the federal government. Until the demographics of the United States change, reforming the "big three" will prove to be hard for the foreseeable future. Changing demographics has to start with a reform of the US agricultural system to not incentive any food product over another(organic or industrial). However, the incentive to switch from grains or any grain substitute stems from the consumer.

There is nothing that can be done regarding the aging population, yet if the population was healthier than healthcare cost would be much lower. A healthier population would also allow more political choices regarding raising the retirement age and cutting healthcare costs. The United States' demographics always defines American politics. Age and health are the nation's biggest imbalance and correspondingly our biggest long-term costs. American success helped cause those imbalances; American geographic and political advantages can fix those imbalances.