Data Is a Loaded Gun
One thing that never ceases to amaze me is the love we humans have for cherry-picking data to come to conclusions. A fine example is this Malcom Gladwell article in which, in an attempt to prove the hypothesis that SUVs are unsafe due to poor handling, he runs a Chevrolet TrailBlazer and a Porsche Boxster Convertible through the Consumer Reports test track. Unsurprisingly the $50,000 sports car (designed mainly for driving around Consumer Reports’ test track) outperformed the SUV, which costs about half as much and was designed for schlepping kids to and from baseball practice. While you’d have to be borderline retarded to consider a test-track comparison of a Boxster and a TrailBlazer proof or even anecdotal evidence of anything, Gladwell does so with glee.
