Description:
In this book, political scientists, anthropologists, sociologists, and policy analysts critically examine the murky origins of misleading or inaccurate statistics used in global policy and traces their remarkable proliferation.
Brief description: Peter Andreas is John Hay Professor of International Studies at Brown University. He is the author of Blue Helmets and Black Markets: The Business of Survival in the Siege of Sarajevo and Border Games and coeditor of Sex, Drugs, and Body Counts, all from Cornell. He is also the author of Smuggler Nation and coauthor of Policing the Globe and Drug War Politics.
Review Quotes:
If you're a journalist, a gluttonous consumer of news, or are easily swayed by the slapdash, stop what you're doing and go buy a copy of Sex, Drugs, and Body Counts: The Politics of Numbers in Global Crime and Conflict. Set aside a couple of hours tonight to read three or four of the essays that academics Peter Andreas and Kelly M. Greenhill collected in it. Then, sit down in front of your computer and send me an e-mail to thank me for helping to end your enslavement to the dodgy numbers that taint journalism and public policy. It's not just a good book. It's a great book. And it belongs forever on your bookshelf.
--Jack Shafer "Slate"