The simplicity and honesty of this book hurts my feelings. As if someone told me something I've always known, but didn't want to admit to myself.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I've always heard that the world runs on mathematics. Being an English teacher, I could not fathom this, that is, until I read The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity by Carlo M. Cipolla. The author/economics professor reveals the basic laws of stupidity and stupidity as the foundational cause of many of society's ills. Cipolla is a good teacher. I understand everything he proposes in his basic law. Being from small town USA where corruption literally has the sidewalks crumbling, I am amazed and gratified to come across the clearest, most logical (and mathematical) explanation of what happens when a large portion of the intelligent leave an area for economic reasons. This opens the door for the bandits to come in. Cipolla's basic laws of stupidity explain much of my community's woes. I recommend this book for anyone who desires a greater understanding of what is happening to our communities and to our societies. Cipolla's book is the best lesson I ever had. Stupid is not just a casually-tossed adjective; it is a significant threat. It's mathematically proven.

Succinct, but entertaining. Insightful, genuine and terrifyingly accurate. A must read. Nothing short of genius.

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this one. The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity is, essentially, an essay that was originally written in 1976, in English, that has never been published in the United States until now. Based on the description, I wasn't sure if I was going to be reading a serious non-fiction essay or a piece of satire. Either way, being over forty years old, I didn't know how relevant it would be to today's society.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that it's a little bit of both - a serious essay written in the form of satire to appeal to a wider audience; and I found it just as relevant today as the author must have found it when he wrote it almost half a century ago!

The author delves into the human condition and lays out five laws that demonstrate, albeit in a non-scientific way, there is a percentage of "stupid people" throughout all societies, regardless of age, ethnicity, education, or status, and that this percentage remains fairly consistent. He points out that, more often than not, "[s]tupid people cause losses to other people with no counterpart of gains on their own account [and] [t]hus the society as a whole is impoverished."

It's both eye-opening and frightening to realize, based on the laws laid out in this essay, how many stupid people are in positions of power and influence in the world. As the first law says, "always and inevitably everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals in circulation."

The essay can be summed up by the Fifth Basic Law: "[a] stupid person is the most dangerous type of person," which the author effectively demonstrates by plotting the degrees of human stupidity on an X-Y axis. There is also an appendix which includes graph templates for the reader to use in their own interactions to find the level of stupidity he or she is dealing with and then plan the most rational course of action to take.

This is basically a short essay article that for some reason got turned into a book. Cipolla, an economist, presents five laws that show "stupid people can and do rule the world" (from book's description). You might have questioned that statement in the past. Nowadays readers can just read this and nod at how true it is.


The book was initially released in 1988; it was around in private edition before that, and overall, this book has been around the block. This edition is its first American (U.S.) release. Apparently the U.S. has been missing out what the rest of the world knows by now.


Anyhow, the author presents his five laws and explains each one in a short chapter. Some graphs are included, which may or not help clarify the laws. Though the author claims he is not cynical nor defeatist, the reader may end up feeling hopeless if they have any degree of intelligence as they realize the hopelessness of defeating the power of stupidity. Is there really a way to neutralize it? I, for one, am not so sure.


The book overall is an OK read. Between the second and third laws, the author writes an intermission to expand some of the ideas. I think he could have done without it as it adds little to the overall text. Overall, the argument is good, but it is a bit dry at times. In the end, a bit depressing.

Short guide to the prevalence and implications of stupidity in our society.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, as it reminded me that literally anything we learn in economic or the sciences is fragile because of one unpredictable and underestimated factor - human stupidity. It was fascinating and informative, although it's pretty terrifying that there's little we can do to deal with people and behaviors which as simply stupid.

While I can't summarize them because this book is already so short, Cipolla's book elaborates on the following five Laws:
1. Everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals among us.
2. The probability that a certain person is stupid is independent of any other characteristic of that person.
3. A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person while deriving no gain and even possibly incurring losses themselves.
4. Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals.
5. A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person.

My only wish is that it was longer; in particular, I would like to learn how we can practically counteract the inevitability of stupidity in major societal developments.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I guess mostly I'm confused? This isn't so much a *book* as it is a Medium article? I kept being worried what I got from NetGalley was missing pages?

Apparently this was an essay (yes, called an essay in the foreword) written in 1976 by an Italian, originally in English, but never formally published in English. So now a Big 5 is publishing it as a "book." Is it meant to be a joke book? A coffee table book? It's... not really a book? It's a series of assertions about stupid people with some light wit, a chart or two, and little depth. I mean, fine, but like... I guess looking at the cover and the description on NetGalley I was expecting a proper piece of non-fiction. Oh well. It only took me approximately 20 minutes to read, so there's that! I'm sure when it's marketed to consumers it will be more clear what it is; that was the main thing with me--expectation vs. reality.

In a time of shaming people for wearing masks, refusal to believe in the Corona virus, and an all time embracing of willful ignorance, it is hard to remember that people have always been stupid. Previously published in Italian, Cipolla's book takes a turn in English.

Carlo Cipolla's The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity takes stupid, turns it into an equation and shows you that it has always been worse than we've thought. This book is a great reminder that it is nearly impossible to plan for all outcomes, because (surprise) we cannot predict the irrational behavior of human beings who act irrationally.

There are multiple economic laws based around Cipolla's theory. This is a must read for anyone who has ever though "where in the heck did they get that from this presentation" or has watched something they are proud of go up in flames because of another person's irrational behavior.

This book is a must read.