Big Fat Liars: How Politicians, Corporations, and the Media Use Science and Statistics to Manipulate the Public

Chafetz punctures many of the politically correct positions dear to the heart of the liberal establishment who are determined to run our lives. If you doubt that conclusion just read the other reviews here which are clearly written by those same liberals who cannot abide any challenge to their politically correct beliefs. He got my attention with comments on smoking. My wife and I have read all of the government reports and examined the data. She actually interviewed the author of the EPA report on two occasions and he stated categorically that there is "no science behind it (the report) it is a social program". The fact that there has never been any empirical connection between smoking and the ever increasing smoking associated diseases is ignored by the politically correct who want to run our lives. So today Nicotine is viewed as the most addictive drug while cocaine and marijuana get ignored even though most people who stop smoking do it without assistance while this isn't true of the hard drugs so popular among the elite. The same is true for obesity, diabetes, and cholesterol -- all the result of manipulated statistics with little to no empirical evidence to support the position that all of us need to take drugs and contribute to the profits of the pharmaceutical companies. There is an epidemic of obesity and diabetes in this country -- but this happened overnight because the government changed the threshholds. A simple case of manipulation and a further indication of how science has been corrupted through statistical manipulation. This is a good book and a real eye opener for those who have suspicions that all is not well in the world of science. Chafetz takes on virtually all of these politically correct and liberal causes and exposes them for what they are -- unfounded and manipulative. No wonder the liberal establishment hates this book. I recommend reading it just to get another side of some very important points ranging from global warming to obesity to anti-business bias.

"The world is richly populated with those who would use what little we know or pretend that we know to gain power over us." A critique on government and institutions. I disagree with some of his perceptions (and book title), but this does not distract from his main focus. His words are sensible, refreshing and humorous at times. He brings up excellent points and raises important and interesting issues. Further study resources are offered. Chafetz's life work is alcohol abuse, which he discussed in his chapter on addiction. The final chapters are a rap up and a workable philosophy: The recipe for life--"we each do more than our share" "The unexamined life is not worth living."-----------------Socrates Morris tackles political correctness, unfairness, victims, addiction, "global warming", frivolous lawsuits, the cigarette debacle, the increasing numbers and power of lawyers and the creation of the nanny state. "Stealing the ideas and words of one person is plagiarism; stealing from many people is research"---------------Wag (gossip) It's about making our own choices; learn to discern, to question. "Positive conservationalism [is] turning into negative environmentalism." Some would believe freedom is self destructive, we must turn over our power to the experts; they know what's good for you. The government routinely diverts around the constitution and the amendments through bribes, leading to lost rights and inferior products. How far is going to far? The truth may not be what it seems. "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience."------------------C.S. Lewis Wish you well Scott

Part of my (non) retirement life is taking time to read again. I'm trying to expand my reading and read points of view that are beyond my comfort zone - books that I believe will have a point of view which is different from mine. Big Fat Liars is one such book. Chafetz feels we need to question everything. I agree with this point of view. It's so important to ask questions when people in authority or people who are "experts" tell you the "truth." What is the basis for the statement? Who else is paying you? Unfortunately, Chafetz's need for questions doesn't extend to opinions that he supports. For example, on page 163 of the book it says "Some people, the experts say, are genetically predisposed to have 'addictive personalities'; others may have been conditioned to be that way by their upbringing or by advertising." Chafetz rightly questions who are the experts are that are making such statements? How did they arrive at their conclusions? These statements are current conventional wisdom, but are they correct? However, Chafetz falls into his own unsupported conclusions when he states further down on the page, "Yet it is well-established that many people with a family history of addiction, and an early environment shaped by it, do not become addicts...The 'environment' portion of the public health model as applied to addiction here falls entirely apart." One may ask, "Well-established by whom?" The next sentence says, "Moreover, many addicts quit, and most do so without expert help." Again, from where does this data come? There are many examples like this throughout the book. Morris Chafetz is the president of the Health Education Foundation and comes with a long list of credentials. The book is worth reading because there are excellent points. It's a book that must be read carefully, however, because Chafetz falls frequently into the same trap he condemns. I agree with Chafetz's basic premise. We must ask questions whenever someone tells us the "truth." We must also remember to listen carefully to the answer.

What a fantastic, beautiful piece of work. His ideas (and vast amount of references) about the tobacco industry and Congress, about obesity and individualism, physicians and self-respecting autonomous patients, drugging school-kids for ADHD, and so many other topics are real and refreshing. He quotes from Mark Twain, The New York Times, and Fortune Magazine, to The British Medical Journal and other scientific publications and and inserts them in perfect locations as transitions to the modern-day congressional sneakiness we all assume is occuring, but don't really know how. Well, he gives facts, numbers, dates, EVIDENCE. Written by a Physician with experience in these fields and especially in the field of Public Health, you can be sure that the information is reliable, and if you disagree, that's great, because you shouldn't agree with *everything* you read anyway! This book will make you see how you're being lied to in every facet of this life from the media to politicians to quack physicians. You can easily finish reading this book in one weekend, as he leads you to places you never noticed existed, and the trip is great!