Myths, lies and downright stupidity

I like Stossel. He doesn't take any guff and he doesn't give a damn. He takes on many conventional wisdoms here and he does a fine job. These are outgrowths of his 20/20 segments and often contain revealing snippets of interviews. The endnotes refer back to specific pages and contain references to primary and secondary sources, often to the 20/20 website itself, which contains a "living" bibliography. Neat idea, though, in all fairness to any readers of this review, I hate the idea. I do wish this was a bit more rigorous, i.e. scholarly, but what can I expect. I do wish Stossel would write an entire book on the made-up health care "crisis." Recommended for kicks.

I actually read quite a few non-fiction books throughout the year, often times many at once. I however, rarely finish one all the way through, which is usually what I wait until to post a review here. Here is one that didn’t take too much effort for me to move through. Short, concise sections on different myths and rebuttals to them. Everything from politics, science, personal health and economics. While John doesn’t go into great detail about any one myth, he presents enough information to make his case and allow the reader to investigate further to verify for themselves. As a conservative, he touched on many of the points I’ve been making for years. However, there were a few points that I disagreed with him on. Overall a well show more written and though provoking book. show less

I was already a fan of John Stossel's TV segments, now I can say the same about his writing. This is pretty much a collection of stories he's done for television. Well researched and put together as his work always is, and quite honest when revealing how he blindly fell for many of the thoughts and ideas exposed in the book.

A word of caution... if you are in love with your ideals and way of thinking about many items in today's culture, don't read this book. He just might challenge you to re-evaluate them.

Based on input from others, I expected NOT to like this book, but that wasn't the case. I can't say everything Stossel talked about was new and earthshaking, or that I bought into everything he said, but there was more than enough I did agree with. For example, I'm not a bottled water drinker, so when he says that tap water is every bit as good, if not better, than bottled water, it's no news to me. And I believe the Country is lawsuit crazy, so when he talks about how medical liability cases like some John Edwards is so proud to have won actually have negative consequences for the rest of society, in terms of new product development, driving good doctors out of the profession, or increasing health costs unnecessarily, I'm pretty much show more in agreement. He just goes over many other examples, many of which you will agree with, others you may not, but it's mostly common sense and makes for good discussion around the dinner table. show less

The famous 20/20 anchor takes on a large number of commonly held beliefs and discusses whether or not they are true. I learned quite a bit about a broad range of subjects, and Stossel's straightforward writing style is immensely readable. However, I have a feeling that if I was a die-hard believer in any of the myths covered here I would have left unconvinced and unimpressed. The trouble with this book is that there are too many topics discussed with not enough depth. Most of the myths are covered in a page or two, with a couple of general statements, maybe some statistics or interviews, and an example to illustrate his point. Unfortunately, the plural of anecdote is not data, and I suspect many people dismiss Stossel's words out of show more hand because of it. That's not to say people should avoid this book on the grounds that it doesn't dig very deep; some of the myths are covered quite thoroughly and even with the ones that weren't I still came away with a lot to think about and some stuff I'd like to look into further. I just think Stossel's message would be more effective if he wrote a book with a narrower focus and a lot more detail. show less

As a long-time correspondent for ABC's 20/20 John Stossel has covered a lot of scams, myths, lies, cheats, and, yes, some downright stupidity. In this book he discusses business fraud, government excesses, education, frivolous lawsuits, healthcare, faith and parenting. Although I think many of his topics are great fodder for discussions I also think that anyone can find an expert to agree with the point they are so adamant in promoting. I don't agree with a lot of his conclusions even though he has produced numerous experts in these fields to support his views. Closing American companies and sending the workload to foreign countries is not a good thing in my opinion but apparently he sees it as nothing but a plus. It does help the show more economically strapped workers to have a better life in most cases and it certainly helps the business owner to more profit but I don't think the displaced American worker sees it as quite the rosy picture he has painted. Stossel mostly hits a home run with his assessment of our education system and government and I truly enjoyed the section on parenting. Like I said, these subjects are great discussion topics but I don't feel downright stupid for not agreeing with the author. show less

I really like John Stossel. I have been watching him on ABC's 20/20 since I was a kid. I like his reporting style and the investigations. I didn't know he wrote books, too.

This is a good one. John takes myths we may think as true and debunks them. He shows his research. I also enjoy it because what he exposes matches so much with my belief set. He takes on everything from Global Warming to parenting methods.

The first chapter talks about why the media usually gets the story wrong. I found it enlightening and what I have suspected all along - they are lazy and are willing to go with the first person they can find that calls themselves and 'expert' on the subject that gives them the angle they want. End of their research.

He goes on to show show more the results of his team's research on many different subjects. He shows what is commonly reported is not always the case. Sometimes it is. Most of the time, it isn't. He lists his sources carefully, but doesn't beat the reader over the head with it. If the information presented rattles the reader, as some did me, there are plenty of sources to follow up on, to do one's own research. At the same time, he doesn't pull any punches, either.

One thing I like about this book is John doesn't hold himself up as immune. He admits where he has been wrong in his beliefs over the years and how the research changed his mind. For example, he used to believe companies were always out to fleece the consumer and do everything they could to get ahead. He has since discovered companies are for the most part good and try to do the right thing. It is the government and trial lawyers that cause problems to the system. He has more than one chapter on how these groups have gone wrong.

The book is an informative read. There are plenty of topics to bounce around between. Some you may or may not agree with on his point. I like how his sources are laid out. If I wanted to do additional research, it wouldn't be hard. He gets a few things wrong (Mormons don't practice polygamy and haven't for over 120 years), but for the most part, I'm satisfied with the information presented. I recommend this book highly. My son read it in a day and took it to school today for use in a debate class (Do video games influence kids to be violent?). Keep on reporting and writing, John. I appreciate it! show less