Lies and beauty contests

Friday, June 27, 2014

Economists with the slightest measure of common sense treat statistics with great caution. They have good reason, especially so in developing countries where there are few resources for something that is considered by policy makers as ‘irrelevant’ as statistics.

But in developed countries the statistics that are provided by agencies responsible are often very questionable and depend on political interests of those in power. A statistic is an attempt to capture a very complex reality in one number and so it is bound to be flawed- but not all statistics are born equal, some are more flawed than others.

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Lies and beauty contests

Economists with the slightest measure of common sense treat statistics with great caution. They have good reason, especially so in developing countries where there are few resources for something that is considered by policy makers as ‘irrelevant’ as statistics.