Ventura musta read Emanuel Todd's book

[Harry Edwards]

Mike, it's not my statistic, it's Ventura's.

One could spend many hours researching literacy lore on the Web. Here's 
something I HAVE found (from CBS News):


Poor Marks For U.S. Education System
GENEVA, Nov. 26, 2002


South Korea has the most effective education system in the world's 
richest countries, with Japan in second place and the United States and 
Germany near the bottom, a United Nations study said Tuesday.

The ranking "provides the first 'big picture' comparison of the 
relative effectiveness of education systems across the developed 
world," the UNICEF study said.


The article goes on to provide THIS list:

  (from) UNICEF

world's richest countries, indicating the percentage of 14 and 15 year 
olds scoring below a minimum level in literacy, math and science.

1. South Korea 1.4 percent
2. Japan 2.2
3. Finland 4.4
4. Canada 5
5. Australia 6.2
6. Austria 8.2
7. Britain 9.4
8. Ireland 10.2
9. Sweden 10.8
10. Czech Republic 12.2
- (tie) New Zealand 12.2
12. France 12.6
13. Switzerland 13
14. Belgium 14
- (tie) Iceland 14
16. Hungary 14.2
- (tie) Norway 14.2
18. United States 16.2
19. Germany 17
- (tie) Denmark 17
21. Spain 18.6
22. Italy 20.2
23. Greece 23.2
24. Portugal 23.6


The point still being NOT to prove the veracity or bogusity of any 
particular statistic, but rather to open you eyes and seek the truth.

twisty




On Jan 21, 2005, at 2:20 PM, Michael Eisenstadt wrote:

> Twisty,
>
> Ventura's collection of statistics are mostly bogus.
>
> According to V, US is 49th in literacy in the world. If this were 
> true, then there should be a list of the 48 ahead of us.
>
> I challenge you to produce this list. If you cant produce
> the list, then it would follow that the statistic is bogus.
>
> Go ahead, produce it.
>
> Otherwise you lose the argument.
>
> As for invective & its automatic connection with Jim Strong
> in my mind, see my post to Wayne Smith.
>
> Mike
>
>
>
>
>