[.ca] Hidden Order: Economics of Everyday Life, the (ISBN 0887308856)

From Amazon.com:
To David Friedman (son of Milton Friedman), economics explains everything. In a way, that's an odd thing for him to say: Friedman Jr. has never taken an economics course in his life (by training he's a physicist). Yet he defines economics broadly and uses it as a tool to understand all aspects of human behavior, from selecting a mate to picking a grocery store line to switching lanes in rush-hour traffic jams. If you like the economics-for-everyman approach of such writers as Steven E. Landsburg, then Friedman is for you.

Buyer Be Wary:
This is one of those books I thought I was really going to like. It has that attitude--you know--where you think you're going to end up knowing true stuff about interesting aspects of everyday economic life that ordinary people are always misinformed about. Not! I had to stop reading after three chapters, well four actually, as I skipped to Chapter 17 which was supposedly going to make the potato subsidy analysis more realistic (a promise unfulfilled as far as I could tell). This may be the worst book on economics, or the worst book period, I have attempted to read in a while. Why is it so bad? Let me count the ways. For starters, the writing is terrible. Try this "sentence": "SO if 10% more income is enough to let me buy what I bought last year, THEN 10% more income would make me better off than I was last year, SO some smaller increase in income would make me as well off as I was last year, SO prices have increased by less than 10%." \ocapitalizations not in original\c If that resonates with you, you may like the book. Blatant errors come quickly: in the very first pair of graphs, one is wrong. Perhaps there is an clue early on that the reader should be wary of taking any of this book seriously. When discussing the economics of reselling textbooks in Chapter 2, Friedman says, "In more realistic cases the answer is more complicated." That should be a label tacked on every analysis I've looked at in the book. The analyses are often misleading at best and completely in error at worst. If you get this book, make sure you first understand indifference curves, as the book relies on them but does not explain them. One is tempted to think the lack of explanation is purposeful, as the measure they represent is an imaginary quantity: utils; and the difference between two sets of utils (i.e., two indifference curves) in any given analysis could be inconsequential (or not). Secondly, and very importantly, make sure you precisely label and put representative numbers on each graph's axes--again something that Friedman does not do (one wonders why). Finally, don't buy into any results unless you're pretty sure all relevant factors are considered. Chapter 3 begins the graphical analyses and muddled methodology is soon apparent as Friedman purports to prove changes in house prices in either direction always make you better off! Label the axes appropriately, assign representative numbers along each, apply a percentage for selling costs for the sell-and-buy-another-house option budget lines, draw everything correctly, and you will see that his analysis and conclusion are erroneous. This book is probably a good read for zealous adherents of conservative/libertarian economic philosophy who will find ammunition for preconceived notions and not care if the quality of analysis is good or bad--it sounds good. I don't know who else might want to slog through this. Instead, if you are somewhat literate in economic theory, try Keen's Debunking Economics for better logic, deeper insight, and more realistic economics.

Hidden Order: An AP Microeconomics Student's Perspective:
This book was easy to read, helpful, and gave interesting and unique examples for common economic theories. This is a great book to use in an AP class! Paired with our economics textbook, this reading explained the phenomena that we read about in the textbook.

Hidden Agenda:
I was really excited to read this book. I particularly liked the idea of applying economic theory to everyday problems. However, someplace into chapter three I began to realize that there were major flaws with many of the examples, not to mention the poor, often quite opaque writing style. As I continued, a pattern emerged of sloppy logic that always resulted in unsubstantiated libertarian conclusions about gun control, taxes, public policing, marriage, etc. In fact, the writing is so outrageous that I quite enjoyed finishing the book as an exercise in political satire. This book is perfect for every militia-man's bunker book shelf, or for anyone who is just curious how ill-conceived and ridiculous the right-wing economic dogma really is. This is one of the worst books I have ever read.

Excellent second-stage primer:
Like Steven Landsburg's "Armchair Economist," David Friedman's "Hidden Order" is an excellent primer in basic economics. Any book that helps bring real economics (as opposed to pseudo talk-show/pundit/political speech "economics") to an understandable level is good in my book, even if occasionally flawed. "Armchair" did a good-to-excellent job of boiling down complex economic questions and answers. "Hidden Order" does so as well, but note that it's not for the light-hearted; plenty of graphs are available, and one not versed in Econ 101 may become temporarily lost. Thankfully, Friedman shores up his chapters by proving the theory with graphs, then stating "Here it is in English..." This allows readers who are not graphically inclined to skip over it without losing much understanding, while readers more interested in finding the proof behind the claim can peruse the mathematics at their leisure. Still, it's not all perfect. There's some issues that he goes into great length, but others are touched on and left hanging. In part this is to reduce the down time for an already-sluggish topic, but the length for each issue varies quite a bit. And I have no idea why a parking meter is on the cover.

A Useful Tool:
The title of this book alone sparked intrigue for me. I am not a business savvy student and sometimes I fail to remain interested in what we read in our textbooks. So when I saw that a book could explain the relevance to everyday life, I was ready to read. The great thing about this book is that every idea, every thought, every lesson is backed up by an example. The examples are not fabricated situations that seem impossible in real life. They are applicable to our daily lives. David Friedman uses everything from the grocery store lines to traffic jams to help explain concepts such as economic equilibrium. By using real examples that pertain to my life, I am able to see economics more clearly. Reading this book along with an economic textbook is a great idea. It gives a different perspective on important lessons to help give complete understanding. It's not a particularly easy read, but if it is taken seriously, it is a great tool to help understand economics. I would recommend it to anyone striving to learn more.