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Counterknowledge (Hardcover)

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Key Phrases: cultic milieu, cranial osteopaths, bogus history, Intelligent Design, The Secret, Loose Change (more...)
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

According to Thompson, we are experiencing a pandemic of counterknowledge: misinformation packaged to look like fact, but that is demonstrably false. In rapid-fire prose, Thompson, editor-in-chief of the Catholic Herald, examines several cases of counterknowledge, arguing that creationism, conspiracy theories regarding 9/11 and claims linking autism to childhood vaccines have been promoted as factual by respected journalists and publishers. In one example of the power and danger of pseudohistory, Thompson devotes a great deal of effort to take down already much-debunked notions of creationism and Holy Blood, Holy Grail, and the ridicule he heaps on Mormonism explains little about why it is such a rapidly growing religion. He is scandalized that Gavin Menzies's 1421 is heavily promoted by all of Britain's leading chains of bookshops, though Menzies's notion that the Chinese discovered America has been widely derided by historians. Seeing the source of the spread of counterknowledge in the decreasing role of institutions like church and family, and the rise of postmodernism, Thompson sheds much heat but little light on the age-old phenomenon of human gullibility and its exploitation. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

In the genre of skeptical literature, there are books like Richard Roeper’s recent Debunked! (2008), or the writings of James Randi: books that debunk pseudoscience, bogus history, charlatans, and the like. There are also books like Michael Shermer’s Why People Believe Weird Things (1997), and this one, which explore why so many seemingly bright individuals buy into so much rank idiocy. Thompson tackles such notorious foolishness as 9/11 conspiracy theories, satanic ritual abuse, the bafflingly widespread belief that the Chinese discovered America, and other abundantly debunked nonsense, but he tackles it from the point of view of a sociologist. Why do people persist in believing outrageous things when the evidence of their invalidity is so easy to find? Why do people so readily fall for counterknowledge—defined as misinformation packaged to look as fact—when the actual facts are readily available? And why do people who should know better (in particular, book publishers) treat this garbage as though it didn’t stink to high heaven? An important, impassioned addition to the skeptical literature, and a book that makes a significant contribution to the art of critical thinking. --David Pitt
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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 176 pages
  • Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co.; 1st American Ed edition (September 17, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0393067696
  • ISBN-13: 978-0393067699
  • Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.7 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #654,883 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Damian Thompson
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
cultic milieu, cranial osteopaths, bogus history, cranial osteopathy, satanic ritual abuse
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Intelligent Design, The Secret, Loose Change, Ben Goldacre, The Da Vinci Code, New Age, Oxford University Press, Patrick Holford, United States, Graham Hancock, Dan Brown, British Muslims, Four Corners, Islamic Creationism, Rhonda Byrne, Mount St Helens, David Colquhoun, Raymond Tallis, Michael Shermer, Gavin Menzies, The Year China Discovered the World, Priory of Sion, Stephen Williams, American Free Press, Daily Mail
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Customer Reviews

11 Reviews
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2.6 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars A not entirely successful broadside against some worthy targets, January 22, 2009
By David M. Giltinan (San Francisco) - See all my reviews
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I wanted to like this book more than I did. But Damian Thompson was not a particularly appealing advocate for the forces of reason. His tone throughout is one of self-righteous superiority, with the result that after a couple of chapters, it's like being trapped at a dinner party with a know-it-all guest - you don't care how right he is - you just wish he'd shut up already.

Not that his targets aren't worthy. They fall into three main categories: pseudoscience, pseudohistory, and what might be thought of as examples of "popular delusions and the madness of crowds". Thompson gives particular scrutiny to:

# Creation "science" , "intelligent design" and the assorted shenanigans of evolution-bashers.
# The prevalence of untested, unproven "alternative therapies" (which he refers to as "Quack remedies"), from homeopathy to reflexology to aromatherapy.
# Assorted conspiracy theories (primarily related to 9/11)
# Examples of "pseudohistory": Jesus's lovechild survives, but the Catholic Church maintains a conspiracy of silence. The Phoenicians/Israelites/Celts/Greeks/Vikings/Chinese discovered America in (choose your pre-Columbus date). Aliens (or technologically super-savvy ancient civilizations) roamed the earth, building the pyramids and Mayan temples until perishing in the lost city of Atlantis!
# Marketing phenomena such as "The Secret", dubious dietary supplements, QLink bracelets with crystal-based 'healing powers'.

All of this makes Thompson righteously indignant. And I'm certainly not going to defend any of them here - indeed, all this bogus 'knowledge', shoddy scholarship, and fuzzy thinking does deserve our skepticism, at times our condemnation. But from a purely pragmatic point of view, Thompson would be more persuasive if he didn't wax quite so white-hot indignant about each and every example he cites. After all, not every example of 'counterknowledge' has equally serious consequences - some are considerably more damaging than others. Bogus science which denies the link between HIV and AIDS, or which makes unwarranted claims about a putative link between MMR vaccination and autism is clearly actively dangerous, as it can cause people to avoid therapies proven to be beneficial. Those who promulgate this kind of misinformation, in the service of their own political or profit-driven agenda, deserve to be challenged and possibly earn our moral censure. But no matter how much the success of Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret" or Gavin Menzies's "1421: The Year China Discovered America" might irritate Thompson (and clearly, it does!), it is hard to see these books as being quite as dangerous or reprehensible as,say, holocaust denial used to foment anti-Semitism or the South African government's distortion of information related to the cause of AIDS.

Thompson's uncalibrated indignation has the unfortunate side-effect of suggesting that every instance of 'counterknowledge' deserves equal condemnation, which ultimately hurts his argument, though not fatally. A far more serious flaw throughout the book is what I can only term a persistent anti-Islamic strain, which is hard to ignore, and seems particularly unfortunate given the author's position as editor-in-chief of The Catholic Herald .

For instance, Thompson claims that "Islamic Creationism is turning into a serious problem for British sixth-form colleges and universities", but fails to substantiate this claim with anything but the flimsiest of anecdotal evidence. He goes on to assert that the damage of Creation Science is limited within the United States because it is still "essentially located within the American cultic milieu", while "Islamic creationism" by contrast is a unified and increasingly influential component of a wider Islamic worldview". Which might be OK if he didn't then go on to establish that almost all of the anti-Darwinist propaganda promulgated in the name of Islam is the product of a single individual. In these sections Thompson appears clearly guilty of applying differential standards of evidence to support his claims.

In the end, the most useful part of this book was the "Further Reading" section that concludes it.
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17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Here are some gems to debunk today's bunco artists, June 5, 2008
By Theodore A. Rushton (PHOENIX, Arizona United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Counterknowledge: How We Surrendered to Conspiracy Theories, Quack Medicine, Bogus Science and Fake History (Hardcover)
"First you decide what you believe, then you find the evidence, brushing aside anything that doesn't fit," writes Thompson in explaining how irrational beliefs develop.

Logic is the ideal way to unmask the bunco artists of the modern world. So, how does a modern Don Quixote challenge the windmills of superstition, nonsense and lies of zealots, crackpots, frauds and government bureaucrats?

This book is a great answer. It is a marvelous collection of fads, fallacies, farces and frauds in the name of science, religion, medicine and every other modern topic. Thompson does a masterful job in exposing the myriad phantasies of the modern world; however, even the best of logic cannot overcome the delusions of true believers.

Folly is usually the result of stupidity or cupidity.

For example: Tobacco is harmful to one's health. The British health ministry knew this by 1956; but any warning was vetoed by Prime Minister Harold Macmillan "because the Treasury believed the revenue from cigarette taxation was too important to be put at risk." (This direct quote is from John Kay, the Financial Times, June 4, 2008)

Government officials took the attitude, "We lied to you for our own good. Now trust us." President George W. Bush used a similar rationale of "lying to Americans for our own good" to generate fear about Weapons of Mass Destruction and thus justify his war on Iraq.

Since governments lie, why should people trust official government statements? Likewise, why trust an expert doctor who diagnoses cancer? This legacy of distrust by official sources is why some people trust quacks and charlatans more than experts for simple answers to complex issues.

Actually, the desire for simple solutions goes back at least to the legend of Alexander the Great and the Gordian Knot - - the ultimate simple but irrelevant solution to a complex problem. In today's world, Creationism is the simple answer vs. the complexities of the math and physics of Quarks and/or Superstring theories.

The practical person, more so in modern American than in Alexander's time, is admired. Instead of untying the long complex knowledge-knot of cancer, it's easier to trust the counterknowledge of a quack-with-a-pill than a doctor with a complicated diagnosis. Since government officials tell lies or deliberately bury the truth, it's hardly surprising that some suspect the World Trade Center attacks are an American government plot?

Some people want quick and easy answers. As Thompson clearly shows, there's always someone who "knows about a secret little shortcut". This book is a first-class debunking of today's popular bunk and bunco artists.

It's a marvelous roadmap of modern gullibility. It is concise, readable, straightforward and packed with logic. For that reason, it should be read by everyone; for that reason, sadly, only the intelligent will find it interesting. It's simply too logical, too rational, too good, to become a best seller.

As such, it's a pity. The book is excellent; being so, it will only appeal to readers who don't believe in fads, fallacies, cults and things-that-go-bump-in-the-night. It's truly an example of offering gems to the literate audience . . . Let's hope there's enough rational people left to make it a best seller.



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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars A lean and cautionary smorgasbord about false knowledge., February 8, 2009
This is a book about pseudoscience, pseudohistory, health quackery, fear mongering and false knowledge. Thompson cites instances of shallow inquiries, collateral and advantageous spread of low caliber information, unsubstantiated assertions and pseudoauthority. He writes about holocaust denial, pre-Columbian discovery of America by the Chinese, Da Vinci code, evolution vs. creation controversy, and ostensible MMR-autism link. He details the existence of proponents with academic sounding qualifications and even universities with dubious standards. He laments the general gullibility of the public. This is a well-referenced small fonted 162 page book. Alas, there is no index!

I tend to be not so harsh about the lacunae in this book. Of course, Thompson has not produced an encyclopedic work on anti- knowledge; there are gaps, indeed. For example his chapter on "Desperate Remedies" discusses alternative medicine, homeopathy, chiropractic and nutritional therapies in a negative vein. His stand is not only supportable but also not inaccurate in general. He leaves traditional allopathic medicine broadly unassailed. This position, however, is not entirely neutral in my opinion.

We, physicians who practice traditional, not alternative, medicine, were eager to use hormone therapy. We created diseases based on trivial or incidental imaging data or social inconveniences. The harms brought about by hormone therapy, by unnecessary surgeries based on incidental MRI findings or filthy profits gained by overtreatment without strong evidence are well-known by now. Books by Marcia Angell ("The Truth About the Drug Companies: How They Deceive Us and What to Do About It") or Melody Petersen ("Our Daily Meds: How the Pharmaceutical Companies Transformed Themselves into Slick Marketing Machines and Hooked the Nation on Prescription Drugs") draw a much better picture of what is not so correct or healthy about the knowledge base with which current medical orthodoxy operates. These weaknesses are also products of counterknowledge, but Thompson does not discuss them in any detail. Is it because these are not considered "alternative?"

If it is pseudoscience, in general, that one wishes to bemoan then I recommend an earlier work by Charles Winn and Arthur Wiggins ("Quantum Leaps in the Wrong Direction: Where Real Science Ends...and Pseudoscience Begins"). This is a complementary and humorous account about pseudoscience; it delves into specifics of fallacies and illogic extant in contemporary thinking.

Thus, there is some stale repetition of topics already well-covered by others; nevertheless this book will serve those who are not experts in every arena where counterknowledge is likely to be hiding and thriving. This is a lean cautionary smorgasbord. There is something for everyone - that is the strength of Thompson's book. I enjoyed reading about pseudohistory, an area of unfamiliarity to me. There were a few noteworthy passages. Here is one from the last chapter titled, "Living with Counterknowledge": ..."The practitioners of counterknowledge teach us that the universe is not arbitrary, that things happen for a reason."

A random and arbitrary world is a frightening concept for those of us with weaker constitutions; this fear is perhaps the sustaining force of counterknowledge.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Damian's Omen Too: Read only if you copy is 2 quid or less!
"If there's one thing I really get off on,
It's a nun suit painted on some old boxes
Gets me hot. Want to watch a dental hygiene movie? Read more
Published 6 months ago by SuperAmanda

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, incurious rant
Thompson fails to provide an answer to one of the most interesting questions about conspiracy theories: why are particular theories more plausible to some individuals over others... Read more
Published 9 months ago by C. Rubincam

2.0 out of 5 stars The people who will read this book are not the people who need to read it
In Counterknowledge, Damian Thompson takes on Holocaust deniers, homeopathic medicine, alternate historians, and creationists and shows how they use books, the media, and the... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Elizabeth Ray

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste your money on this book
I only read this because my husband bought it and I felt sorry that he spent so much money on it. This book isn't about counterknowledge, it IS counterknowledge. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Novice Cook

5.0 out of 5 stars what is the appeal of quackery?
A brisk, rude review of the many faces of intellectual adolescence.

As an erstwhile fan of Erich von Daniken, the amazing Kreskin, and spoon benders of all types, I... Read more
Published 15 months ago by The Gracchi

1.0 out of 5 stars An odd combination of sneering and alarmism, containing numerous misconceptions and errors.
Young-earth creationists in the US have built a museum containing mechanised tableaux showing dinosaurs and humans in Flintstone-style coexistence. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Tim Wilkinson

2.0 out of 5 stars Un-Review...jt
First, this is not properly a review, because I have not read the book. I decide not to buy this book based upon my perception of its internal contradictions. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Joey Tranchina

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshingly irreverent
Mr. Thompson provides a compact (undiluted he might say) view into the quackery and pseudo-knowledge that is a growing trend throughout the world. Read more
Published 23 months ago by B. G. Clemmons

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