Affirmative Action Around the World-Thomas Sowell

Thomas Sowell, acclaimed conservative author and economist, in this book gives an in-depth report on racial set aside programs around the world. I was quite unaware that such programs existed outside the "Affirmative Action" programs here in the United States. In fact, the first such series of programs were initiated in no other than India with the aim of getting lower "scheduled" classes into the universities and occupations they were previously not represented within. Sowell's argument is that racial set aside programs generally do more harm then good, never help the particular people (generally the underclass poor) originally envisioned by the given legislation, and inevitabley exacerbate racial tensions rather than soothe them (in fact in some nations such as Sri Lanka, racial tensions came into being after set aside programs were put into place). Though affirmative action type programs sound good in legislation, and win votes and sympathy, they have rarely been shown to actually work. I do not intend on reproducing Sowell's entire work here. All of Sowell's claims are backed by hard economic and statistical evidence. As the quote from John Adams on the first page reads:

"Facts are stubborn things, and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."

This, being the 2nd Thomas Sowell book I've read (The Quest for Cosmic Justice was the first), was a very straight forward read, and I do indeed recommend it to those politically and philosophically inclined. In fact, I am currently reading yet another Sowell book, "A Conflict of Visions." He is an excellent and clear voice for the conservative intellectual tradition existing throughout modern history; whatever that may mean for today.