Books 📚: Contemporary Non-Fiction: Freakanomics- A Rogue Economist Explores The Hidden Side Of Everything (2006)

According to the Oxford Dictionary the definition of “conventional wisdom” is a “generally accepted theory or belief.” Or, put another way, the public generally accepts the beliefs and proclamations of those who are supposed experts in a given field. Freakanomics co-authors Steven D. Levitt and Steven J. Dubner explore the dubiousness of conventional wisdom in what became one of more controversial non-fiction books of the early 2000s. In chapter three of Freakanomics the authors point out that many so-called experts on a given subject are scarcely objective and “can be self-interested to the point of deceit.” (Pg. 81) This brings up another important question: just how far can deceit and inaccurate go?

Unfortunately, there’s probably no limit to how far the deceit could go. Freakanomics explains the simple but disturbing point which is that “experts” need a mouthpiece to spread whatever it is that they’re touting. They need journalists to spread this throughout the world, and journalists are always looking for their next attention-grabbing story, so a titillating narrative that boosts tv ratings is always eagerly sought. In the all-consuming electronic media age conventional wisdom is repeated over and over again to the point where any new ideas or opposing viewpoints are often crowded out.

Another vitally important factor to consider is the immense influence of advertising in creating (or fabricating) conventional wisdom. Many of us would like to believe that we’re wise to the wiles of advertisers having undo influence over our lives. It’s disturbing to think just how much predatory advertising might be seeping into our subconscious, influencing our views of the world – and partially playing a role in how we respond to it. Of course, one way or another it seems, everything is about money regardless how we try to cut it. Freakanomics zeroed in on exactly how so-called “conventional wisdom” gets twisted when it stated: “A little creative lying can draw attention, indignation, and — perhaps most important—the money and political capital to address the actual problem.” (Pg.82)

While this may be obvious to some, it’s easy to overlook the motivations of social issues advocates or the political machines appealing to us because these realms are often so fraught with controversy, are divisive, and therefore, emotionally charged. When we view volatile situations through an emotional lens it becomes easier to accept what we’re being told without questioning it more deeply and accepting what might be false narratives and then giving support to dubious causes, and/or perpetuating negative stereotypes.

Perhaps the most surprising of these false narratives from Freakanomics was the media portrayal of drug dealers as lawless millionaires living high on the hog at the expense of hard-working taxpayers. This image didn’t bear closer scrutiny until an intrepid investigator, Sudir Venkatesh delved into the subject deeper than probably anyone else had done previously – and lived to tell the tale. After graduating from UC San Diego he continued to work for his PhD in sociology at the University of Chicago. He didn’t realize just how difficult this research would be until his graduate advisor sent him to the poorest black neighborhoods in Chicago with a detailed questionnaire to survey how it’s citizens felt about being black, impoverished, and underprivileged. This chapter of the book captured my attention the most because I had also believed the aforementioned view.

It should surprise nobody that Venkatesh was initially met with life-threatening hostility venturing into the Chicago projects alone, but soon enough he managed to embed himself with one of the gangs hanging out in these derelict buildings. After gaining their trust he would eventually spend six years living among them, studying their lives in vivid detail. His laborious and dangerous work led to an astonishing conclusion. Despite the popularity of dissolute, rolling-in-cash dope dealers as portrayed in numerous tv shows and movies churned out by Hollywood — the direct opposite is usually the case.

In the nasty underworld of illegal drugs it turns out that most dope dealers still live with their mothers! The reasons for this are pretty simple when the situation is examined closely, but illustrates the failure of so-called conventional wisdom to patly answer deeper concerns and disprove a long held stereotype. Besides the obvious occupational hazards of severe injury or death through gun violence, or going to prison for life – Venkatesh reached the conclusion that the business of illicit drugs operates much like any other business. As described in Freakanomics, (believe it or not!) McDonald’s was the business model.

With any business endeavors it’s the low-paid minions and foot soldiers supporting the weight of a much bigger organization. Only a few make it to the rarefied executive suite, earn top dollar and get the glory of successfully achieved career goals. Most drug dealers start and remain at the bottom, at the equivalent of minimum wage – just like workers at legit positions with corporate employers like McDonald’s. At least the typical fast food worker doesn’t usually worry about dying in a drive-by shooting or being tortured to death by rival gang members as the result of deals gone bad or because of vicious turf wars. For many food service workers it’s just a summer job while they’re attending school, for extra income or for whatever other reason the job is the temporary stepping stone to hopefully something better.

However, for those starting out in the illicit drug trade there’s precious little room for advancement, and poverty is still their lot in life. The end results are usually prison or death – often sooner rather than later. There’s no health insurance, no unemployment insurance, no retirement accounts, etc. that a person might have with a legal employer like McDonald’s. Only a special, or particularly ruthless chosen few become cash saturated bigwigs like the major Chicago area dealer named JT that Venkatesh learned so much from about the underworld.

Certainly, both follow the capitalist formula of maximizing their profits as much as possible and as consistently as possible. Whether a business is legit or not, a fairly high degree of control over its workers and implementing sophisticated operations are vital to continued success. Perhaps the most striking similarity between McDonald’s and JT’s organization (Black Disciples) was the meticulous record keeping of profits/loss, expenses, and so forth. In fact, Freakanomics learned from Venkatesh that: “if you were to hold a McDonald’s organizational chart and a Black Disciples org chart side by side, you could hardly tell the difference.” (Pg. 89)

For anyone like Venkatesh who originally hadn’t given much thought to the daily lives of ghetto criminals he learned a great deal as to how that drug organization operated from the bougie top to the squalid bottom. He provided a more accurate view of this subculture, realizing the importance of viewing a subject from multiple sides, not automatically accepting a “conventional wisdom” viewpoint that may be twisted to promote public outrage.