Why in the world would an intelligent person vote against his own self interest?
In our current political discourse, it appears that those who get the most air time repeat the same thing over and over again. The Mass Media always seem to find some ordinary looking guy or gal to say things that makes me wonder, "Why in the world would an intelligent person vote against his own self interest?" I went searching for the answer...The Economist came to the rescue.
In its August 13, 2011 edition, in a segment called Economic Focus, it provided a very plausible explanation in, "Don’t look down: The poor like taxing the rich less than you would think." Here is a brief excerpt: "Economists have usually explained poor people’s counter-intuitive disdain for something that might make them better off by invoking income mobility. Joe the Plumber might not be making enough to be affected by proposed hikes in tax rates on those making more than $250,000 a year, they argue, but he hopes some day to be one of them. This theory explains some cross-country differences, but it would also predict increased support for redistribution as income inequality widens. Yet the opposite has happened in America, Britain and other rich countries where inequality has risen over the past 30 years."
Lord have mercy on the american people.
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