Media reviews

What are “quack policies”? The name has been coined by the writer Jamie Whyte for policies that are claimed to be based on evidence but which do not stand up to scrutiny. Examples are given in a publication of that name issued by the Institute of Economic Affairs. Leading examples he gives are the attempt to impose a minimum price of alcohol, the attack on “passive smoking”, the global warming crusade and “happiness engineering”. The fact the book is published by the free-market IEA and that the policies he scrutinises find support in the left and centre of the political spectrum (including UK Prime Minister David Cameron) may cause many to ignore it. The loss will be theirs.

— Financial Times, September 5th, 2013

Synopsis

Politicians and lobbyists who promote new regulations and taxes typically claim to have science on their side. Scientific evidence shows that the actions they wish to discourage are harmful and that government intervention would reduce this harm. Yet much evidence-based policy is grounded on poor scientific reasoning and even worse economics.

Amazon reviews

Peter Pearson

★★★★★ Insightful, meticulous

Whyte’s dense and careful style rewards slow readers like me. Quack Policy reviews four cases of public policy based on faulty reasoning, with meticulous dissection of the logical failings behind each. Whyte does a good job of explaining the concepts he employs that might be unfamiliar to the reasonably educated reader, but avoids wallowing in baby talk. His conversational style is a pleasure to read.

Ranting Soberly

★★★★★ Devastating and hilarious

Jamie Whyte dismantles Blair’s empty rhetoric with all the precision you would expect from a philosopher with style and humour to boot as well.

Paul

★★★★★ Required reading

Jamie Whyte is very clever. He is a former lecturer of Philosophy at Cambridge University. This book explains the techniques used by Nu Labour to hood wink the electorate. It is a “good read” by that I mean a fun read, but this is a very serious read too. We should all be aware of the dishonest way political leaders present their arguments.

I also recommend his book published in the UK as “Bad Thoughts – A Guide to Clear Thinking” this was published in the USA with the very clear title “Crimes Against Logic – Exploring the Bogus Arguments of Politicians, Priests, Journalists and Other Serial Offenders”

You should read it.