So some guy from CATO does a poll for the WSJ

[Swede]

that purports the libertarians and conservatives are way smarter than liberals. What a steaming pile of propaganda.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703561604575282190930932412.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_PoliticsNCampaign_6

And here is a google search of Daniel B Klein. What an impartial guy he is. Not.

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=daniel+b+klein&aq=f&aqi=g1&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

[haele]

1. Smarter does not mean more fearful, selfish, or stubborn.

Nor does it mean that one subscribes to a narrow world view or acts within an authoritarian framework.
It may seem to be smarter to the fearful or narcissist to isolate oneself, take fewer risks, or alway strive to be in control, but in the long run, it's extremely limiting - and a major unexpected event outside of one's little world will tend to destroy all of one's "hard work" and "thrifty actions" that went into creating a comfortable shell of a life.

The ability to adapt, to be able to let go of comforting but unsustainable activity, to be aware that there is a whole world outside of one's sphere of influence is several magnitudes of "smarter" than the average conservative, not to mention the majority of Randroids who have made claim to the social-political category "libertarian".

Of course, the average conservative or libertarian would consider themselves smarter because they think they are captains of their own fates and brook no opposition to their personal viewpoint. Which considering how big the world is, is frankly quite short-sighted.

Haele

[edgineered]

2. extra credit question:

PR efforts, loss prevention policies, use of chemical dispersants and laissez-faire corporate politics is for the greater good of the people. SA/A/etc

[EFerrari]

3. That's why all our top flight universities are stuffed with conservative faculty!

LOL

[negativenihil]

4. from the "study"...

"...none of the eight questions challenge typical conservative or libertarian policy positions, and that had some such questions been included, the measured economic-enlightenment means by ideological groups may well have been somewhat different."

Skewed from the start. There was no way this "study" would have produced any other results.

[laughingliberal]

6. Exactly! nt

[Liberal In Texas]

5. Actually it pruports to say that liberals "flunk Econ 101".

Not that libertarians and cons "are way smarter" than liberals.

It's a survey designed to say that the only correct way is our way; unregulated free enterprise. And anything else is incorrect, so liberals flunk because they don't think this way.

Economic theory isn't like empirical science where you can have definite proofs and it's a bullshit oped.

[miscsoc]

7. They define "smarter" as "more libertarian"

Literally this is what they did, if you look at the questions in the poll and how they defined the "right" answers.

Questions and answers (unenlightened = wrong for the purposes of the "study"):

"1) Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services (unenlightened answer: disagree). 2) Overall, the standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago (unenlightened answer: disagree). 3) Rent control leads to housing shortages (unenlightened answer: disagree). 4) A company with the largest market share is a monopoly (unenlightened answer: agree). 5) Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited (unenlightened answer: agree). 6) Free trade leads to unemployment (unenlightened answer: agree). 7) Minimum wage laws raise unemployment (unenlightened answer: disagree)."

[nichomachus]

8. "Libertarian"= "dumber than shit"

Libertarianism is a nonsensical utopian theory. The only difference between libertarianism and soviet communism is that at least communism made sense on paper.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. Hoo, boy. Wanna look at that?

The other questions were: 1) Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services (unenlightened answer: disagree). 2) Overall, the standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago (unenlightened answer: disagree). 3) Rent control leads to housing shortages (unenlightened answer: disagree). 4) A company with the largest market share is a monopoly (unenlightened answer: agree). 5) Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited (unenlightened answer: agree). 6) Free trade leads to unemployment (unenlightened answer: agree). 7) Minimum wage laws raise unemployment (unenlightened answer: disagree).

First off, "unenlightened" does not have anything to do with facts, but with ideology. And the ideology is wrong on every fucking point. So OF COURSE progressives would have the "wrong" answers.

1) Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services (unenlightened answer: disagree).

Mandatory licensing means maintaining of professional standards. If someone hires just any jackass for a service, not knowing what his qualifications are, he may well have to have the job done again and again before it is done right, INCREASING the price paid overall.

Fail.

2) Overall, the standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago (unenlightened answer: disagree).

Real wages have fallen over the past 30 years. An objective look at it makes it obvious - 30 years ago your average wage earner could support a family on one income. Not true anymore - the average wage earner does not bring in enough to support the average family today.

Fail.

3) Rent control leads to housing shortages (unenlightened answer: disagree).

Rent control has nothing to do with housing shortages. Housing shortages are determined by new housing construction, not rents.

Fail.

4) A company with the largest market share is a monopoly (unenlightened answer: agree).

Do they really think that we don't know the definition of 'monopoly'? This is bullshit, and I don't believe that anyone would agree with this statement.

5) Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited (unenlightened answer: agree).

If they weren't being exploited, why are they being employed? There is nowhere in the world that a dollar a day is a living wage, and forcing them to work in sweatshops in hazardous conditions for 10, 12, 14 hours a day is exploitation no matter how you cut it. You can only disagree with this statement if you pay no attention to the very real exploitation of the workers. The fact that they line up for the jobs, as the only work available, does not mean it is not exploitation.

6) Free trade leads to unemployment (unenlightened answer: agree).

When free trade leads to companies relocating overseas, the result is a loss of jobs where the companies once were. Is there any other definition of 'unemployment'?

7) Minimum wage laws raise unemployment (unenlightened answer: disagree).

There is sometimes a short-term dip in new hires after the minimum is raised, but overall as more people have more money to spend because of the raise in the minimum the places where that money is spent will increase hiring to meet the expanded demand.


Every one of these "enlightened" answers is a fucking lie, based on conservative ideology and not supported in the real world.

[Jim__]

10. Essentially the question was - Do you agree with conservative economic theory?

Liberals don't. He's an idiot for needing to ask the question.

[glitch]

11. As was the WSJ for printing him. Probably directly approved by Murdock.

That poor paper.