Thomas Sowell was born in North Carolina and grew up in Harlem. As with many others in his neighborhood, Thomas Sowell left home early and did not finish high school. The next few years were difficult ones, but eventually he joined the Marine Corps and became a photographer in the Korean War. After leaving the service, Thomas Sowell entered Harvard University, worked a part-time job as a photographer and studied the science that would become his passion and profession: economics. After graduating magna cum laude from Harvard University (1958), Thomas Sowell went on to receive his master's in economics from Columbia University (1959) and a doctorate in economics from the University of Chicago (1968). In the early '60s, Sowell held jobs as an economist with the Department of Labor and AT&T. But his real interest was in teaching and scholarship. In 1965, at Cornell University, Sowell began the first of many professorships. Thomas Sowell's other teaching assignments include Rutgers University, Amherst College, Brandeis University and the University of California at Los Angeles, where he taught in the early '70s and also from 1984 to 1989. Thomas Sowell has published a large volume of writing. His dozen books, as well as numerous articles and essays, cover a wide range of topics, from classic economic theory to judicial activism, from civil rights to choosing the right college. Moreover, much of his writing is considered ground-breaking -- work that will outlive the great majority of scholarship done today. Though Thomas Sowell had been a regular contributor to newspapers in the late '70s and early '80s, he did not begin his career as a newspaper columnist until 1984. George F. Will's writing, says Sowell, proved to him that someone could say something of substance in so short a space (750 words). And besides, writing for the general public enables him to address the heart of issues without the smoke and mirrors that so often accompany academic writing. In 1990, he won the prestigious Francis Boyer Award, presented by The American Enterprise Institute. Currently Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institute in Stanford, Calif. http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell http://media.townhall.com/TownHall/icons/TH-feed-icon-128x128.gif http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell TownHall.com, Where your opinion counts. 128 Copyright (c) 2012 Townhall.com, A Salem Communications Web. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED jim.dearras@townhall.com (Jim De Arras) Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:01:00 GMT Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:01:00 GMT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ A funny thing happened to Mitt Romney on the way to his coronation as the inevitable Republican candidate for President of the United States. Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado happened. Rick Santorum beat him in all... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/02/09/the_antiromney_vote b39d5d70-1458-4147-822d-0bec52ff756b Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:01:00 GMT Governor Mitt Romney's statement about not worrying about the poor has been treated as a gaffe in much of the media, and those in the Republican establishment who have been rushing toward endorsing his coronation as the... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/02/07/a_defining_moment 25724b85-97f2-4675-82fd-f2fe5d42ffd4 Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:01:00 GMT California has a huge state debt and Washington has a huge national debt. But that does not discourage either Governor Jerry Brown or President Barack Obama from wanting to launch a very costly high-speed rail... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/02/01/getting_nowhere_very_fast d7ed8ced-16d8-4e53-a629-b2a1e6a8e82a Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:01:00 GMT The Republican establishment is pulling out all the stops to try to keep Newt Gingrich from becoming the party's nominee for President of the United States -- and some are not letting the facts get in their way.Among... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/31/the_florida_smear_campaign 2b5b8784-e38b-492f-ac54-72f2fd417f88 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT The Republican candidates' circular firing squad now seems to be using machine guns. Whoever the eventual "last man standing" turns out to be, he may not be standing very tall or very steadily on his feet -- and he may... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/26/is_anybody_serious 8f9f2ceb-4281-40df-a95b-6cfa743ce8cb Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT This may be the golden age of presumptuous ignorance. The most recent demonstrations of that are the Occupy Wall Street mobs. It is doubtful how many of these semi-literate sloganizers could tell the difference between... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/25/a_brass_age 24ed7d94-4f1d-446c-afa2-291df7b98e7b Wed, 25 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT Just days before the South Carolina primary, polls showed Mitt Romney leading Newt Gingrich. Then came the debates and the question about Gingrich's private life, which brought a devastating response from the former... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/24/south_carolina_message eb862437-d9fd-4800-9734-006161120b14 Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT Different histories, geography, demography and cultures have left various groups, races, nations and civilizations with radically different abilities to create wealth.In centuries past, the majority population of... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/20/an_ignored_disparity_part_iv 48b08b7f-bc65-48c2-a652-c9de3b772ef9 Fri, 20 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT Anyone who has ever been in a Third World country, or even in a slum neighborhood at home, is likely to wonder why there can be such dire poverty among some people, while others are prospering.Both politicians and... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/19/an_ignored_disparity_part_iii ba35ee2f-76c2-4de8-8766-38cf5f939028 Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT One of the ways of trying to reduce the vast disparities in economic success, which are common in countries around the world, is by making higher education more widely available, even for people without the money to pay... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/18/an_ignored_disparity_part_ii c8591e4b-5bf0-4b6d-afb9-7fd867e06fd1 Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT With all the talk about "disparities" in innumerable contexts, there is one very important disparity that gets remarkably little attention -- disparities in the ability to create wealth. People who are preoccupied, or... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/17/an_ignored_disparity bf27556f-eb60-467a-8200-8a37df421b7a Tue, 17 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT The news that Eastman Kodak is preparing to file for bankruptcy, after being the leading photographic company in the world for more than a hundred years, truly marks the end of an era.The skills required to use the... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2012/01/10/kodak_and_the_post_office 626bcb71-491e-443c-96e1-1cc17b0b43aa Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:01:00 GMT No one seems to be really happy with this year's field of Republican candidates for that party's presidential nomination -- except perhaps the Democrats.The sudden rise, and equally sudden fall, of a succession of... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/12/29/republican_voters_choices d6419eae-9235-469e-ad92-1478bb7d2a6a Thu, 29 Dec 2011 05:01:00 GMT Random thoughts on the passing scene: Talk show host Dennis Miller said, "I don't dig polo. It's like miniature golf meets the Kentucky Derby." Nothing illustrates the superficiality of our... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/12/27/random_thoughts f4be3c0e-c360-4f1d-bd8b-c71bb45671c3 Tue, 27 Dec 2011 05:01:00 GMT If Newt Gingrich were being nominated for sainthood, many of us would vote very differently from the way we would vote if he were being nominated for a political office.What the media call Gingrich's "baggage" concerns... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/12/20/the_past_and_the_present 6f26eeae-789b-4f62-abbb-8d1fb3d277eb Tue, 20 Dec 2011 05:01:00 GMT Washington gridlock may turn out to be the salvation of the Obama administration. Not only does gridlock allow the president to blame Republicans for not solving the financial crisis that his own runaway spending... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/12/13/gridlock_to_the_rescue 5fb833d0-1d16-45e0-b649-4361383dd877 Tue, 13 Dec 2011 05:01:00 GMT The joys of Christmas do not include coping with crowds at shopping malls or wracking your brains trying to figure out what to get as a gift for someone who already seems to have everything. Books are a way out... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/12/06/christmas_books 641cf846-bfee-48ea-b06c-44dfb247a53e Tue, 06 Dec 2011 05:01:00 GMT It used to be common for people to urge us to learn "the lessons of history." But history gets much less attention these days and, if there are any lessons that we are offered, they are more likely to be... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/30/lessons_of_history 09852eb6-5c62-49db-a617-aa04315ebbb6 Wed, 30 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT Now that Newt Gingrich has become the latest in a series of Republican front-runners, he is getting the kinds of scrutiny and attacks that have done in other front-runners. One of the issues that have aroused... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/29/gingrich_and_immigration 71e8300c-682a-49d8-b1e2-4d6227a4ee64 Tue, 29 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT Many people are lamenting the failure of the Congressional "Super Committee" to come up with an agreement on ways to reduce the runaway federal deficits. But you cannot judge success or failure without... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/23/failure_or_success 4d3b9b79-d789-4c30-a6f4-cdb06d1b8e60 Wed, 23 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT "Alice in Wonderland" was written by a professor who also wrote a book on symbolic logic. So it is not surprising that Alice encountered not only strange behavior in Wonderland, but also strange and illogical reasoning... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/22/alice_in_liberal_land ab28c1fd-69c2-4a01-943b-af524315f7ee Tue, 22 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said that a good catch phrase could stop thinking for 50 years. One of the often-repeated catch phrases of our time -- "It's the economy, stupid!" -- has already stopped thinking in some... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/15/will_republicans_blow_it 5d7433dd-aa17-4d21-9673-aa8d228904a1 Tue, 15 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT The real scandal in the accusations against Herman Cain is the corruption of the law, the media and politics.Let's start with the law. Some people may think the fact that the National Restaurant Association reportedly... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/10/the_real_scandal 2000619f-ada4-4497-b1de-b5c50db04b88 Thu, 10 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT One of the things that has struck me, when I have gone on luxury cruise ships, is that most of the passengers look like they are older than the captain -- and luxury cruise ships don't have juveniles as... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/08/numbers_games c150cbdc-129d-4aa8-936b-268c32d352fa Tue, 08 Nov 2011 05:01:00 GMT In various cities across the country, mobs of mostly young, mostly incoherent, often noisy and sometimes violent demonstrators are making themselves a major nuisance.Meanwhile, many in the media are practically gushing... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/02/democracy_versus_mob_rule b5fe48a4-9dbd-414e-8108-6b51f4593d34 Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:01:00 GMT California is a great place for studying the thinking -- or lack of thinking -- on the political left. The mindset of the left was recently displayed in a big, front-page story in the October 30th issue of... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/11/01/payday_loans 09095fd8-32fa-45f1-8d53-959a6e3db935 Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:01:00 GMT Back in the 1920s, the intelligentsia on both sides of the Atlantic were loudly protesting the execution of political radicals Sacco and Vanzetti, after what they claimed was an unfair trial. Supreme Court Justice... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/10/25/the_media_and_bullying 640c46ca-2bed-4c35-8563-b4501d519e7c Tue, 25 Oct 2011 04:01:00 GMT Random thoughts on the passing scene: Like so many people, in so many countries, who started out to "spread the wealth," Barack Obama has ended up spreading poverty. Have you ever heard anyone as... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/10/18/random_thoughts c5579d6f-672e-468f-a415-8d5b12a06e75 Tue, 18 Oct 2011 04:01:00 GMT Among those who have been disappointed by President Barack Obama, none is likely to end up so painfully disappointed as those who saw his election as being, in itself and in its consequences, a movement toward a... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/10/11/reverse_racism 6827b0c9-64bd-4e7f-8abc-6c5ba097e4db Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:01:00 GMT Twenty years ago, hysteria swept through the media over "hunger in America." Dan Rather opened a CBS Evening News broadcast in 1991 declaring, "one in eight American children is going hungry... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/10/05/the_hunger_hoax c9034fbf-2fcd-47a3-9509-a7a0bb264249 Wed, 05 Oct 2011 04:01:00 GMT If there was ever any doubt that the Democrats take the black vote for granted, that doubt should have been put to rest when Barack Obama told the Congressional Black Caucus, "Stop whining!" Have you... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/10/04/stop_whining 3f30f606-aab7-481e-b688-0884d0fd0ed8 Tue, 04 Oct 2011 04:01:00 GMT They say "all politics is local." But economic decisions impact the whole economy and reverberate internationally. That is why politicians' meddling with the economy creates so many disasters. The... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/28/politics_vs_economics d0ef9024-e01c-4fe0-933a-4792ff3de08b Wed, 28 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT One of the problems in trying to select a leader for any large organization or institution is the tendency to start out looking for Superman, passing up many good people who fail to meet that standard, and eve http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/27/superman_vs_warm_body 1f130cba-18bc-4520-ae71-9fcb18e4ccb2 Tue, 27 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT The so-called "debates" among Republican presidential aspirants are classic examples of the media spreading misunderstanding instead of enlightenment. The ancient admonition, "With all you're getting, get understanding"... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/21/unsound_bites 7c8ca509-49fc-4175-a7fe-9da823f48281 Wed, 21 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Many in the media and in politics have gone ballistic over the fact that Texas Governor Rick Perry called Social Security "a Ponzi scheme." Although many act shocked, shocked, as if Rick Perry had said... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/20/the_ponzi_sound_bite 48b4fe61-5715-4286-a69e-a8de5afef90d Tue, 20 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Editor's note: This article is Part III in a series. Click here to read Part I. Click here to read Part II. Ninety years ago -- in 1921 -- federal income tax policies reached an absurdity that many people today seem... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/15/back_to_the_future_part_iii 37a8cde7-87da-461c-926e-31c20a1da184 Thu, 15 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Editor's note: This article is Part II in a series. Click here to read Part I. Some people are hoping that President Obama's plan will get the economy out of the doldrums and start providing jobs for the unemployed.... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/14/back_to_the_future_part_ii b560c9e8-de43-4351-9ec4-06fcf5d1b819 Wed, 14 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Those who are impressed by words seem to think that President Barack Obama made a great speech to Congress last week. But, when you look beyond the rhetoric, what did he say that was fundamentally different from what... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/13/back_to_the_future 80695b5f-8d99-4f2a-9531-e663fc013d99 Tue, 13 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Editor's note: This article is Part II in a series. Click here to read Part I. A few weeks ago, I had what seemed to me a small medical problem, so I phoned my primary physician. However, after we discussed the... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/07/two_different_worlds_part_ii 58bda0f3-464c-4ad9-aeff-bdbed0452069 Wed, 07 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Ideological clashes over particular laws, policies and programs often go far deeper. Those with opposing views of what is desirable for the future also tend to differ equally sharply as to what the reality of the... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/09/06/two_different_worlds b95ad747-620b-4f11-a4ac-c8048a07e113 Tue, 06 Sep 2011 04:01:00 GMT Many in the media are saying how unusual it is for our economy to be so sluggish for so long, after we have officially emerged from a recession. In a sense, they are right. But, in another sense, they are profoundly... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/08/30/an_unusual_economy 10286368-1b00-401e-b13a-c10843fd6217 Tue, 30 Aug 2011 04:01:00 GMT Editor's note: This article is Part III in a series. Click here to read Part I. Click here to read Part II. The orgies of violent attacks against strangers on the streets -- in both England and the United States --... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/08/18/social_degeneration_part_3 c62ee6e4-d6fb-4b5b-92a7-6d79edf83207 Thu, 18 Aug 2011 04:01:00 GMT Editor's note: This article is Part II in a series. Click here to read Part I. Although much of the media have their antennae out to pick up anything that might be construed as racism against blacks, they... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/08/17/social_degeneration_part_2 453c2d2c-2288-4f08-bf6c-89b9c0f1be1f Wed, 17 Aug 2011 04:01:00 GMT Someone at long last has had the courage to tell the plain, honest truth about race. After mobs of young blacks rampaged through Philadelphia committing violence -- as similar mobs have rampaged through Chicago,... http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2011/08/16/social_degeneration bd1c03cf-8a11-402d-9132-1f21ad77b990 Tue, 16 Aug 2011 04:01:00 GMT