5 STARS FOR SURE.
Fills a void in the medical profession library.
Consice and to the point and filled with information
that should be on every MD`S desk.
Must be required reading for the medical student body.

Very little literature exists that explains in succinct and understandable terms the legal and financial aspects of joining or leaving a medical practice. Medical Pracice Divorce accomplishes this difficult task in a superbly written fashion. It should be read by all physicians who are nearing the completion of their residency or already in practice.

If there are fewer and fewer cheap places to live, where should the poor go? And what about the feeling that those who are not working *should* be less well off than those who are? What does that mean when even those who DO work have trouble finding enough food and shelter? These are some of the troubling issue that Blau discusses in his thoughtful look at America's poor. The solutions he offers are public policy solutions, not charity.

I found the book fascinating, but it's probably not something that would appeal to most libertarians. For the rest of us, it lends insight into a problem that persists even now, when the economy is thriving.

I agree that "The statistics that are presented are facts that will spark conversations because many of the unbelievable stats." The vast majority of the statistics are unbelievable, either because of negligence in their calculation, or problems with invalid inferences from them.

Blau's personal bias's plague the text, and render it as useful and believable as a textbook from the U.S.S.R., although because of the well known publisher a lot of otherwise educated people with average data analysis skills might be tempted to overlook some obvious errors. That would be a grave mistake.

Social workers play an important role in our society- increasing the efficiency of those who have suffered some kind of trauma (those who have witnessed murders, or been raped, for instance). However- this book highlights the need for increased scrutiny of claims by those who lack training in the areas they write on.

First an admission: my politics are free-market libertarian -- quite the opposite of Joel Blau's collectivism.

Nevertheless, I opened this book -- published by a distinguished press -- with an open mind, sincerely hoping to learn as well as to be challenged. Neither happened.

Essential to Blau's case for greater government intervention and more "economic democracy" is his factual claim that recent prosperity is an illusion, save for all but the richest Americans. He cites familiar statistics and studies purporting to prove that the average American household reached its peak of earning power in 1973 -- and that it's been downhill ever since. (At one point Blau actually says that prosperity of the sort that Americans knew during the first 30 years following WWII has "disappeared without a trace." Is he serious?)

From time to time, Blau seems to recognize the many problems that have been pointed out with the data he relies upon, but his efforts to meet those objections are weak. More importantly, Blau totally ignores the important research done by economists showing that the average American worker's ability to consume almost all goods and services available on the market is greater today than it was at any time in the past -- including 1973.

If you're looking for well-researched, well-written books that offer clear pictures of the change in American living standards over the years, Blau's book isn't one. Instead, read W. Michael Cox and Richard Alm, MYTHS OF RICH & POOR (Basic Books, 1999), and Stanley Lebergott, PURSUING HAPPINESS (Princeton University Press, 1993). These books are written by economists who know how to use, evaluate, and report empirical data.

In short, no serious person who evaluates the evidence objectively can conclude that the average American worker hasn't enjoyed substantial improvements in living standards over the past quarter century. Indeed, even those tiny handful of Americans (about 5%) who never move out of the lowest income-earning quintile have enjoyed significant increases in their ability to purchase almost all goods and services available on the market.

In addition to painting a woefully distorted picture of reality, Blau's theoretical arguments display a grave failure to grasp the most basic economic principles. For example, in arguing against free trade, he naively assumes that "business" is a great monolith -- monolithically in favor of free trade because free trade gives it access to cheap labor.

But on trade issues there is no monolithic business interest. Some businesses favor free trade because it promises them greater profits, while other businesses oppose free trade because it will subject them to greater competition. Ask USX if it supports free trade in steel. The answer you'll get is a resounding "no!" Ask American sugar farmer if they support freer trade in sugar. Again, "no!" Ask U.S. airlines if they're willing to let foreign air carriers transport passengers on domestic U.S. routes. "Not a chance!"

In truth, business people have been among the greatest and most successful opponents of free trade throughout history. To assume, as Blau does, that free trade helps business at the expense of workers and consumers is among the most tired and well-refuted objections to free trade.

Countless other flaws mar this book. I cannot in good conscience recommend that anyone read it.

. I chose this book because I thought that the book was going to be discussing the stock market and its effects on the economy. I wanted to read about the stock market because I find it very interesting. I believe that Illusions of Prosperity is a very well written book. There are many facts and statistics throughout the book that kept the reading interesting and made me really stop and think. Joel Blau shifted from topic to topic very well and what I thought was the best part about the book was that he gets right to the point and does not drag out any topics. There are a large amount of topics that are discussed in this book. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. The insights and the ideas that Joel Blau shares throughout the book are well written and presented very well. I really like the way that Joel writes because he covers so much information and the information he gives is mind-boggling. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interesting in learning amazing facts about a wide range of topics. Joel Blau covers almost every topic that deals with economic security, from the stock market, wages, and age discrimination. I thought some of the best topics that were covered in this book were: The income barrier between different races and sex, facts about the number of businesses that move to different countries for cheaper labor and the amazing differences in labor costs, unbelievable unemployment facts, and the differences in jobs with higher levels of education. The statistics that are presented are facts that will spark conversations because many of the unbelievable stats. I would give this book 3.5 stars out of 5.