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The Magic, Necessity, and Illusion of Statistics

The Magic, Necessity, and Illusion of Statistics
Individuals wait for quick tests for COVID-19 at Hospital Franciscano Nossa Senhora das Graças, in Lagoinha, São Gonçalo, Brazil, on Nov. 25, 2020. Luis Alvarenga/Getty Images
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Commentary

Newly literate people tend to have a reverent attitude towards the printed page, for they suppose that if the truth can be printed, what is printed must be true. Statistics have a similarly magical quality for many, perhaps for most, of us nowadays, as if by their very nature or existence they conveyed a superior insight into reality.

Theodore Dalrymple
Theodore Dalrymple
Author
Theodore Dalrymple is a retired doctor. He is contributing editor of the City Journal of New York and the author of 30 books, including “Life at the Bottom.” His latest book is “Embargo and Other Stories.”
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