Counterknowledge

by Damian Thompson

Book Overview

We are being swamped with dangerous nonsense. From 9/11 conspiracy theories to Holocaust denial to alternative medicine, we are all experiencing an epidemic of demonstrably untrue descriptions of the world. For Damian Thompson, the misinformation industry is wreaking havoc on the once-lauded virtues of science and reason. Unproven theories and spurious claims are forms of counterknowledge, and, helped by the Internet, they are creating a global generation...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393067696
• ISBN13: 9780393067699
• Release Date: September 2008
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.8" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

what is the appeal of quackery?

A brisk, rude review of the many faces of intellectual adolescence. As an erstwhile fan of Erich von Daniken, the amazing Kreskin, and spoon benders of all types, I appreciate Thompson's debunkings. Attraction to counterknowledge is a natural and healthy expression of a young person's curiosity, just as attraction to astrology was a natural expression of a young culture's exploration of the heavens. Comes a time, though, to replace fantasy with fact-based hypotheses, astrology with astronomy. People and cultures who decline to do so are doomed to perpetual adolescence and irrelevance. A full chapter on the tail-chasing narcissism that is deconstruction would have been welcome. All those hours as an undergrad laboring over Derrida--my god, what a waste of time and brainspace that was! Twenty years later, as biology and cosmology have made huge strides, I see that English grad students are still rehearsing the same tired arguments of the postmodern sophists.

Here are some gems to debunk today's bunco artists

"First you decide what you believe, then you find the evidence, brushing aside anything that doesn't fit," writes Thompson in explaining how irrational beliefs develop. Logic is the ideal way to unmask the bunco artists of the modern world. So, how does a modern Don Quixote challenge the windmills of superstition, nonsense and lies of zealots, crackpots, frauds and government bureaucrats? This book is a great answer. It is a marvelous collection of fads, fallacies, farces and frauds in the name of science, religion, medicine and every other modern topic. Thompson does a masterful job in exposing the myriad phantasies of the modern world; however, even the best of logic cannot overcome the delusions of true believers. Folly is usually the result of stupidity or cupidity. For example: Tobacco is harmful to one's health. The British health ministry knew this by 1956; but any warning was vetoed by Prime Minister Harold Macmillan "because the Treasury believed the revenue from cigarette taxation was too important to be put at risk." (This direct quote is from John Kay, the Financial Times, June 4, 2008) Government officials took the attitude, "We lied to you for our own good. Now trust us." President George W. Bush used a similar rationale of "lying to Americans for our own good" to generate fear about Weapons of Mass Destruction and thus justify his war on Iraq. Since governments lie, why should people trust official government statements? Likewise, why trust an expert doctor who diagnoses cancer? This legacy of distrust by official sources is why some people trust quacks and charlatans more than experts for simple answers to complex issues. Actually, the desire for simple solutions goes back at least to the legend of Alexander the Great and the Gordian Knot - - the ultimate simple but irrelevant solution to a complex problem. In today's world, Creationism is the simple answer vs. the complexities of the math and physics of Quarks and/or Superstring theories. The practical person, more so in modern American than in Alexander's time, is admired. Instead of untying the long complex knowledge-knot of cancer, it's easier to trust the counterknowledge of a quack-with-a-pill than a doctor with a complicated diagnosis. Since government officials tell lies or deliberately bury the truth, it's hardly surprising that some suspect the World Trade Center attacks are an American government plot? Some people want quick and easy answers. As Thompson clearly shows, there's always someone who "knows about a secret little shortcut". This book is a first-class debunking of today's popular bunk and bunco artists. It's a marvelous roadmap of modern gullibility. It is concise, readable, straightforward and packed with logic. For that reason, it should be read by everyone; for that reason, sadly, only the intelligent will find it interesting. It's simply too logical, too rational, too good, to become a best seller. As such, it's

Refreshingly irreverent

Mr. Thompson provides a compact (undiluted he might say) view into the quackery and pseudo-knowledge that is a growing trend throughout the world. He doesn't pull punches and he calls out the false historians, conspiracy theorists, bogus medical advisers, and delusional self-appointed experts for not using empirical evidence to justify their claims. It's well worth the (brief) time it takes to read this, and if you have any appreciation for the debunking of fraudsters, you'll get more than a few laughs along the way.