Taped on November 3, 1983. Mr. Sowell had just produced a blockbuster, called The Economics and Politics of Race: An International Perspective. Any author who writes about the topic of group characteristics is taking a tremendous risk, but Mr. Sowell (a) is not averse to risk and (b) had approached his topic empirically rather than polemically, presenting data that show how the peoples of various regions of the world have fared in different areas of endeavor. As we have learned before on Firing Line, he speaks as lucidly and compellingly as he writes: "One of the things I wanted to deal with in this book ... is whether a group is formed by the society around it or whether, in fact, a group has its own pattern which follows it wherever it goes.... I looked at groups in other countries--Germans in Brazil and Australia and Russia, the Chinese in Indonesia and the United States and other countries--to see if they do in fact have their own pattern or are they simply reflecting what happened to them in that particular country, and what I found, by and large, was that they had their own pattern." Summary by Firing Line staff.
S**1
Civility and depth marks this interview and Q&A.
Very much enjoyed the civility and depth of the discourse on this topic of state intervention re. Affirmative Action. Although Professor Lekachman understood his own topic, his circumlocution made him hard to follow, whereas Professor Sowell's direct statements were easy to follow. I wish our current discourses were as well-formatted.
T**E
outstanding informative show
I forgot how good this show was. William F. Buckley was a brilliant man. I love watching the many episodes available here. Great topics with great guests. It's fun to look back to see how politics was in the past and how our direction has changed. For better or worse, it is what it is.
C**L
fascinating conversation.
Thomas Sowell in his youth. Brilliant conversation. Buckley is an excellent host, yielding to his guest in a respectful and informative interview. I'd watch it at least twice!
J**D
Timeless
Unmatched and irreplaceable, Buckley is deeply missed by fans of logic and wit from around the globe. Thank you for making these available to another generation.
S**N
Great format
Interesting to see how relevant some of the conversations are.
R**G
Five Stars
Any of the discussions with Buckley are extremely informative and insightful.
A**T
Five Stars
interesting, stimulating, informative, controversial-witty--what more can you say?
T**G
Wonderful exchange of ideas rarely seen now
William Buckley and his guests show that intelligent ,civil discourse was very possible, and rather prevalent not so long ago
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