The Myth of the Rational Voter

Featuring Bryan Caplan, Associate Professor of Economics, George Mason University, with comments by Scott Keeter, Director of Survey Research, Pew Research Center, Coauthor of What Americans Know about Politics and Why It Matters, and Will Wilkinson, Policy Analyst and Managing Editor of Cato Unbound, Cato Institute.
In his groundbreaking new book, The Myth of the Rational Voter: Why Democracies Choose Bad Policies, economist Bryan Caplan of George Mason University argues that the quality of policymaking in democracies is poor because the incentives facing voters encourage them to choose irrationally. Drawing on survey evidence, Caplan shows that voters are systematically biased in favor of certain harmful economic policies and argues that the scope of democratic choice should be limited. Please join us for a discussion of this important and controversial new book on the quality and limits of democratic decisionmaking.

[@hrbattenfeld]

Voter: someone who doesn't know the difference between "every vote is counted" and "every vote counts".

[@benjamingeorgecoles8060]

Bruce Ackerman's concept of Democracy Day is an encouraging proposal in response to similar findings.

[@benjamingeorgecoles8060]

I'd like to hear Kaplan comparing the myth of the rational voter (as discussed here) with the myth of the rational consumer (as uncovered by Behavioral Economics especially). Has he not done that somewhere?

[@coltennabers634]

6:03

[@garrettcameron8553]

based

[@HsenagNarawseramap]

Not all heroes wear capes

[@benjamingeorgecoles8060]

Is he not, somewhere here, failing to distinguish between what's good for people and what's economically/financially good for them?
I mean, for instance, free trade may demonstrably make most people richer - but involved in that may be many of them losing old jobs, old ways of life, having to move away from family and community in search of work - and all this may be worth far more to people than the increased financial wealth. And that may be, consciously or not, what's behind their opposition to free trade. See Chris Arnade talking at the American Enterprise Institute. See Mark Blyth's lecture on Why People Vote for Those Who Act Against Their Interests.

[@benjamingeorgecoles8060]

1:18:00 - Can there really be such a thing as an ideologically neutral law professor (or even person)? I mean, rather than just one whose ideology doesn't fall neatly into one of the standard categories?

[@Akatam0t0ma]

Why is the channel listed as unavailable?

[@4OHz]

Was this a presentation?

[@NwoDispatcher]

i find his faith in technocracy distasteful for a libertarian.

[@1112viggo]

well funny thing is that if you change the rules of economy everything changes.. our system dont utilizes the full laibor-force available on the market nor dose it utilizes the full use of resources. for instance we have mroe then enough farmland to feed the world, but we dont cause people can make more moey growing tobaco then crops, so even though growing crops would be better for the public they still grow tabaco instead because it makes more money,but money and wealth is not the same

[@robfromvan]

1112viggo one of the reasons we don't utilize the full labour force is because min wage regulation stops people at the bottom of the economic ladder from finding jobs

[@robfromvan]

1112viggo but we still have lots of food, go in the grocery store, do you see a shortage?

[@spaceT999]

@@robfromvan I think that's the reason they subsidize for farmers who grow food, because they can earn more money selling cash crops, but if everyone grows cash crops normal crops are going to increase in price, making fruits and veggies more expensive. I don't know much about economics but this is my theory

[@OptimalOwl]

@@robfromvan Minimum wage is a contested field where both sides have extensive literatures, but a funnel plot analysis shows the net effect of MW on employment is zero.
@Space Nerd There's a really basic microeconomic explanation for why that is a self-correcting problem.
That said, there may sometimes be other reasons to subsidize farming. Geopolitical or cultural reasons, say.

[@robfromvan]

If it makes more money than food that means people are buying it more than food

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

Bryan Caplan "We've cherry-picked some statistics that confirm our biases."

[@arbitrarilyentertainment8553]

Figures 3.6, 3.10, 3.11, 3.14, 3.18, 3.19, 3.20, 3.21, 3.28, 3.30, 3.33, 3.35, 3.36, and 3.37 are all examples of figures in Dr. Caplan's own book that disagree with his claim. I don't know about you but a set of statistics where 38% actively disagree with one's claim is far from cherry-picking to confirm biases.