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Once again, the fire department is making cuts with computer models based on data of questionable validity, releasing incomplete and misleading statistics when it suits the department’s purposes, and refusing to release raw data so that their claims can be verified by anyone outside the department.
The Atlantic interviewed the author, who discusses some interesting traits of both the statisticians and bureaucrats involved:
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/05/the-fire...
smoorman1024 · 4588 days ago · link ·
Very well put.
Whiz Kid consultants with plans to save the city through technology have their place, but shouldn’t come at the cost of basic services. And while numbers can sometimes cut through the fog of government decision-making, they can just as easily be mistaken or manipulated.