The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity, Carlo M. Cipolla
The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity, Carlo M. Cipolla
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The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity

Author: Carlo M. Cipolla, Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Narrator: Paul Boehmer

Unabridged: 54 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/06/2021

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

"A masterly book" —Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of The Black Swan
"A classic" —Simon Kuper, Financial Times

An economist explores the five laws that confirm our worst fears: stupid people can and do rule the world

Throughout history, a powerful force has hindered the growth of human welfare and happiness. It is more powerful than the Mafia or the military. It has global catastrophic effects and can be found anywhere from the world's most powerful boardrooms to your local bar.

It is human stupidity.

Carlo M. Cipolla, noted professor of economic history at the UC Berkeley, created this vitally important book in order to detect and neutralize its threat. Both hilarious and dead serious, it will leave you better equipped to confront political realities, unreasonable colleagues, or your next dinner with your in-laws.

The Laws:

1. Everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals among us.
2. The probability that a certain person is stupid is independent of any other characteristic of that person.
3. A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person while deriving no gain and even possibly incurring losses themselves.
4. Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals.
5. A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person.

This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF that contains the gain and loss graphs from the book.

About The Author

CARLO M. CIPOLLA (1922-2000) was an Italian economic historian, Fulbright Fellow and professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Cipolla was awarded the International Balzan Prize for Economic History in 1995 and held honorary degrees in Italy and Switzerland. His classic treatise The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity was first published in 1988 and has been published in more than ten languages. Originally written in English, this is the first time it's being published in the US.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Valeriu on April 19, 2023

Nu-mi plac cărțile care vorbesc despre cît de proști sînt ceilalți și cît de „dăștepți” sînt autorii lor. Trebuie să ai umorul și inteligența să te incluzi și pe tine în masa celor sortiți disprețului, massa damnata. Cipolla formulează 5 legi fundamentale: 1. În societate, numărul imbecililor e consta......more

Goodreads review by ☘Misericordia☘ on April 11, 2021

Ok, this is not a book, precisely, but a pamphlet. Which doesn't preclude the book from being a classic, on par with Parkinson's Law and Bullshit Jobs: A Theory. It's so tongue-in-cheek (and, ahem, true) that I can't find it in myself to be politically correct enough to get offended at the language o......more

Goodreads review by Pakinam on September 02, 2024

"الشخص الغبي هو أشدّ أنواع الأشخاص خطراً.." الغباء البشري كتاب للمؤرخ الاقتصادي الإيطالي كارلو تشيبولا وقد باع كتابه هذا أكثر من نصف مليون نسخة وتُرجم إلى 16 لغة... من خلال ٥ قوانين أطلق عليهم الكاتب القوانين الأساسية لغباء الإنسان يحاول الكاتب معرفة و اكتشاف واحدة من أشدّ القوى المظلمة التي تعيق نمو......more

Goodreads review by Mochama on August 04, 2015

Funny but too brief, loved this part: "Whether the Second Basic Law is liked or not, however, its implications are frightening: the Law implies that whether you move in distinguished circles or you take refuge among the head-hunters of Polynesia, whether you lock yourself into a monastery or decide t......more

Goodreads review by Julio on January 28, 2023

"Consider that the average person is stupid. Now, consider that most people are below average."---George Carlin Carlo Cipolla came to exactly the same conclusion as George, only he has the scientific data to back it up. Carlo defines stupidity much as Barbara Tuchman defined folly: "The pursuit of go......more


Quotes

"Cipolla's subtle tongue-in-cheek humor made this book an underground classic in Italy. Today, under current worldwide political trends, it reads more like black humor. Keep in mind: reliable statistical data shows that 98% of the people seriously believe that they are far less stupid than the average."
Carlo Rovelli, author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics

"Subtly lacerating."
Publishers Weekly

“The more you confront actual stupidity in everyday life, the more infuriating it is, whereas the more you contemplate it in the abstract, the more amusing it becomes. Cipolla finds the perfect tone to handle this paradox. On the page, he is arch and slightly annoyed, with a good deal of mock scholarly gravity thrown in…. Cipolla is very droll, and his theories—however deeply he has implanted his tongue in his cheek—have a helpful, clarifying quality.”
Commentary Magazine