The one-sentence summary
Most of what you hear about economics and how economies work is rubbish.
WHAT THE BOOK SAYS 
- This book destroys the myths about economies and explains how the world really works. His points, or ‘things’, are:
1. There is no such thing as a free market (all have some regulations)
2. Companies should not be run in the interest of their owners (because they all want short-term gain, which is usually detrimental)
3. Most people in rich countries are paid more than they should be
4. The washing machine has changed the world more than the internet has (by reducing the time needed for household chores and allowing women to work)
5. Assume the worst about people and you get the worst
6. Greater macroeconomic stability has not made the world economy more stable
7. Free-market policies rarely make poor countries rich
8. Capital has a nationality (transnational corporations always have a national base and mentality)
9. We do not live in a post-industrial age
10. The US does not have the highest living standard in the world
11. Africa is not destined for underdevelopment
12. Governments can pick winners
13. Making rich people richer doesn’t make the rest of us richer
14. US managers are over-priced
15. People in poor countries are more entrepreneurial than those in rich countries
16. We are not smart enough to leave things to the market
17. More education in itself is not going to make a country richer (education makes people live better lives but doesn’t increase productivity)
18. What is good for General Motors is not necessarily good for the United States (businesses need to be regulated properly)
19. Despite the fall of communism, we are still living in planned economies
20. Equality of opportunity may not be fair
21. Big government makes people more open to change (a well-designed welfare state can encourage people to take more risks because they have a safety net)
22. Financial markets need to become less, not more, efficient (modern efficiencies have made the market more unstable)
23. Good economic policy does not require good economists
WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT
- It is in a short, pithy format. Each thing is introduced with a paragraph on What They tell You followed by What They Don’t Tell You.
WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH
- Nothing. It’s a good read even for the layperson.