A Catalogue of Historical Errors and Misunderstandings

• Author: Graeme Donald
• Publisher: The History Press
• ISBN: N.A
• Category: History
• Page: 256
• View: 5196

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rom cats, spats and catacombs to the Wall Street shuffle, Lies, Damned Lies and History is an entertaining look at how historical events didn't always unfold as we think they did. Graeme Donald takes the reader on a journey, century-by-century, showing how the truth we take for granted is a far cry from the facts.

• Author: Jodi Taylor
• Publisher: Hachette UK
• ISBN: 1472264290
• Category: Fiction
• Page: 320
• View: 1400

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The seventh book in the bestselling Chronicles of St Mary's series which follows a group of tea-soaked disaster magnets as they hurtle their way around History. If you love Jasper Fforde or Ben Aaronovitch, you won't be able to resist Jodi Taylor. Rules are meant to be broken, aren't they? 'I've done some stupid things in my time. I've been reckless. I've broken a few rules. But never before have I ruined so many lives or left such a trail of destruction behind me.' Max has never been one for rules. They tend to happen to other people. But this time she's gone too far. And everyone at St Mary's is paying the price. With the History Department disintegrating around her and grounded until the end of time, how can she ever put things right? Readers love Jodi Taylor: 'Once in a while, I discover an author who changes everything... Jodi Taylor and her protagonista Madeleine "Max" Maxwell have seduced me' 'A great mix of British proper-ness and humour with a large dollop of historical fun' 'Addictive. I wish St Mary's was real and I was a part of it' 'Jodi Taylor has an imagination that gets me completely hooked' 'A tour de force'

Lies, Damned Lies, and the Mess in Iraq

• Author: Sheldon Rampton,John Stauber
• Publisher: Penguin
• ISBN: 144062500X
• Category: Political Science
• Page: 272
• View: 5205

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The war in Iraq may be remembered as the point at which the propaganda model perfected in the twentieth century stopped working: the world is too complex, information is too plentiful, and-as events in Iraq reveal- propaganda makes bad policy. The Best War Ever is about a war that was devised in fantasy and lost in delusion. It highlights the futility of lying to oneself and others in matters of life and death. And it offers lessons to the current generation so that, at least in our time, this never happens again. As the team of Rampton and Stauber show in their first new book since President Bush's reelection, the White House seems to have fooled no one as much as itself in the march toward a needless (from a security perspective) war in Iraq. As the authors argue, one of the most tragic consequences of the Bush administration's reliance on propaganda is its disdain for realistic planning in matters of war. Repeatedly, when faced with predictions of problems, U.S. policymakers dismissed the warnings of Iraq experts, choosing instead to promulgate its version of the war through conservative media outlets and PR campaigns. The result has been too few troops on the ground to maintain security; failure to anticipate the insurgency; and oblivious disregard, even contempt, for critics in either party who attempted to assess the human and economic costs of the war. Even now that withdrawal seems imminent, however, the administration and its allies continue their cover-ups: downplaying civilian deaths and military injuries; employing marketing buzzwords like "victory" repeatedly to shore up public opinion; and botched attempts, through third-party PR firms, at creating phony news. The Bush administration entered Iraq believing that its moral, technological, and military superiority would ensure victory abroad, and that its mastery of the politics would win support at home. Instead, it found a morass of problems that do not lend themselves to moralistic, technological, or propaganda-based solutions.

Untangling Numbers from the Media, Politicians, and Activists

• Author: Joel Best
• Publisher: Univ of California Press
• ISBN: 0520953517
• Category: Social Science
• Page: 224
• View: 613

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Here, by popular demand, is the updated edition to Joel Best's classic guide to understanding how numbers can confuse us. In his new afterword, Best uses examples from recent policy debates to reflect on the challenges to improving statistical literacy. Since its publication ten years ago, Damned Lies and Statistics has emerged as the go-to handbook for spotting bad statistics and learning to think critically about these influential numbers.

How Numbers Confuse Public Issues

• Author: Joel Best
• Publisher: Univ of California Press
• ISBN: 9780520930025
• Category: Social Science
• Page: 217
• View: 3878

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In this sequel to the acclaimed Damned Lies and Statistics, which the Boston Globe said "deserves a place next to the dictionary on every school, media, and home-office desk," Joel Best continues his straightforward, lively, and humorous account of how statistics are produced, used, and misused by everyone from researchers to journalists. Underlining the importance of critical thinking in all matters numerical, Best illustrates his points with examples of good and bad statistics about such contemporary concerns as school shootings, fatal hospital errors, bullying, teen suicides, deaths at the World Trade Center, college ratings, the risks of divorce, racial profiling, and fatalities caused by falling coconuts. More Damned Lies and Statistics encourages all of us to think in a more sophisticated and skeptical manner about how statistics are used to promote causes, create fear, and advance particular points of view. Best identifies different sorts of numbers that shape how we think about public issues: missing numbers are relevant but overlooked; confusing numbers bewilder when they should inform; scary numbers play to our fears about the present and the future; authoritative numbers demand respect they don’t deserve; magical numbers promise unrealistic, simple solutions to complex problems; and contentious numbers become the focus of data duels and stat wars. The author's use of pertinent, socially important examples documents the life-altering consequences of understanding or misunderstanding statistical information. He demystifies statistical measures by explaining in straightforward prose how decisions are made about what to count and what not to count, what assumptions get made, and which figures are brought to our attention. Best identifies different sorts of numbers that shape how we think about public issues. Entertaining, enlightening, and very timely, this book offers a basis for critical thinking about the numbers we encounter and a reminder that when it comes to the news, people count—in more ways than one.

A Critical Analysis of Claims Made by the Office of National Drug Control Policy

• Author: Matthew B. Robinson,Renee G. Scherlen
• Publisher: SUNY Press
• ISBN: 1438448392
• Category: Political Science
• Page: 328
• View: 8392

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Revised and updated edition that analyses how the Office of National Drug Control Policy employs statistics to misleadingly claim the War on Drugs is a success. First published in 2007, Lies, Damned Lies, and Drug War Statistics critically analyzed claims made by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), the White House agency of accountability in the nation’s drug war since 1989, as found in the six editions of the annual National Drug Control Strategy between 2000 and 2005. In this revised and updated second edition of their critically acclaimed work, Matthew B. Robinson and Renee G. Scherlen examine seven more recent editions (2006–2012) to once again determine if ONDCP accurately and honestly presents information or intentionally distorts evidence to justify continuing the drug war. They uncover the many ways in which ONDCP manipulates statistics and visually presents that information to the public. Their analysis demonstrates a drug war that consistently fails to reduce drug use, drug fatalities, or illnesses associated with drug use; fails to provide treatment for drug-dependent users; and drives up the prices of drugs. They conclude with policy recommendations for reforming ONDCP’s use of statistics, as well as how the nation fights the war on drugs. Praise for the First Edition “Lies, Damned Lies, and Drug War Statistics is surprisingly easy to read, and Robinson and Scherlen have done a huge favor not only to critics of current drug policy by compiling this damning critique of ONDCP claims, but also to anyone interested in how data is compiled, presented, and misused by bureaucrats attempting to guard their domains. It should be required reading for members of Congress.” — Drug War Chronicle Book Review “The authors have performed a valuable service to our democracy with their meticulous analysis of the White House ONDCP public statements and reports. They have pulled the sheet off what appears to be an official policy of deception using clever and sometimes clumsy attempts at statistical manipulation. This document, at last, gives us a map of the truth.” — Mike Gray, author of Drug Crazy: How We Got into This Mess and How We Can Get Out “Robinson and Scherlen make a valuable contribution to documenting how ONDCP fails to live up to basic standards of accountability and consistency.” — Ethan Nadelmann, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance

• Author: Marie Brennan
• Publisher: Book View Cafe
• ISBN: 161138575X
• Category: Fiction
• Page: N.A
• View: 4471

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There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and prophecy. Kim never had to wonder what to major in at college. Her talent for divination made her future clear in more ways than one. But there are limits to what even a gifted seer can predict, and no card reading or prophetic dream can prepare Kim for what's to come during her junior year at Welton. Something has taken an interest in her friend Julian -- an unseen force neither of them can identify. What starts as a dark omen quickly turns dangerous, as Julian finds himself under attack. To defend him, Kim will need more than her strengths; she will have to call on a form of magic she has never been able to master. If she can't learn fast enough, she may lose her friend forever. Kim knows she isn't ready for this. But if she wants to save Julian -- and herself -- she'll have to prove her own prophecies wrong. This edition contains six illustrations by the artist Avery Liell-Kok.

The One That Got Away and Other Fishy Tales

• Author: Bruce Sandison
• Publisher: Black & White Publishing
• ISBN: 1845023897
• Category: Sports & Recreation
• Page: 208
• View: 3253

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When fishing, there's always an element of chance. And the occasional opportunity to exaggerate just a bit, especially about the one that got away. In Lies, Damned Lies & Anglers, Bruce Sandison searches for the truth about angling, with all it's pleasures and frustrations, and reveals some of the secrets of success he has discovered over the years. For those drawn to river and loch, peace, tranquility and contentment are key. But catching fish is an altogether trickier business. Over the years, Bruce Sandison has caught prize fish almost by accident, suffered as absolute beginners have had more than their fair share of luck, battled the elements in small boats, worn inappropriate waders and has, by chance, also discovered the songs that fish simply can't resist. Through good times and bad, the odd big fish may have got away but, of course, the stories are all true . . .

• Author: David Southwell,Graeme Donald
• Publisher: N.A
• ISBN: 9781787390744
• Category: Common fallacies
• Page: 208
• View: 5196

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Taking each theory in turn, Stuff They Don't Want You to Know considers more than 80 conspiracies, examining the evidence and key suspects in an explosive account of the world's secrets. Meticulously researched, it contains fresh revelations on historical conspiracies that won't go away, as well as information on the latest cover-ups. Brought to life with photographs of the places, people and evidence, this book is your in-depth guide to the grassy knolls and undercover bunkers of a world you were never meant to know existed.

Perspectives and Methods in Culture, Power, and Identity in the New Testament

• Author: Francisco Lozada,Greg Carey
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• ISBN: 1451426313
• Category: Religion
• Page: 240
• View: 1471

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A number of disciplines aligned under "cultural criticism" have changed the shape of contemporary biblical studies not only by offering new methods but by questioning old goals and proposing new ones. Soundings in Cultural Criticism offers a collection of succinct essays in these fields by some of the foremost scholars in New Testament studies. Questions of historical reconstruction, textual interpretation, and present cultural deployment are addressed in an ideal second textbook for New Testament courses.