Evolution Revolution 2020.06 "It's the Economy, Stupid"

     Although a recognized mantra for only 30 years, the "It's the Economy, Stupid" insight has been, is, and always will be, the dominant democratic voting reality.  Perhaps pre-nuclear, pro/con war may have held this spot, but in my life-time no one really gives a damn about whatever issue is in second place. How simple is it  to see that Foreign Relations, Immigration, Health Care and Race, are just elemental subsets of the individual existential question,  "How can I Maximize My Piece of the Pie?"

     One might think that since the "economy" is the only question that 330 million Americans care about, that they would have some grasp of what the hell is an economy.  About  230 million of these sentient beings are over the age of 18 and only about 2% of these would be able to write a coherent paragraph evidencing a rudimentary knowledge of what the word "economy" means. For very much of the 98%, their depth is pretty much akin to their religious depth, i.e., "Jesus good, Buddha bad", or in econ-speak "Capitalism good, Socialism bad". No wonder that the 2% are always terrified that we're going to vote on it.... really!  Whose going to vote....those stupid people, really!

     Obviously, I am not an economist, otherwise I wouldn't be offering such public slander.  Indeed I may be but an arrogant 98%er, however, over 75 years, I have realized a few things economic.

     1.  Human to human interaction directed to survive/prosper (economics) is dualistic either spontaneous (market mode), or structured (managed mode).  There are only these two ways, and the hybrids, available to choose economies.

     2.  Nature, in general, prefers the "market mode".   All sub-human species and, until the last 100 years, most human collectives lived out their lives in market economies, the default mode.

     3.  In times of war there has always been a shift toward the managed mode, enabling concentration of resources at critical battle locations other than at the traditional consumption locations.

     4.  WWII was the Katrina of shifting economies, with global movements toward the managed mode.  Even at wars end, the world was not sure how to revert to market economies or if it was wise to revert.  Many collectives did not revert. Many others certainly were divided about where on the market/managed spectrum they would fare best. 

     5.  Now 75 years later with scores of horror stories about market mode, managed mode, and every conceivable hybrid mode, we are still pretty much divided 50/50 on which mode is best.

     6.  Those who  seek democratic authority, are normally among the 2% who have a basic economic understanding and, as such, know that optimization is somewhere near the middle of the continuum, and that hard market "laissez-faire" is a ticket to revolution and that hard managed "socialism" is a ticket to revolution. 

     7.  Unfortunately those seeking elective power fare best by claiming identity with, not optimum economic policy, but, with one or the other simplistic mode extremes held by the 98%.  Damn few are part Christian and part Buddhist, and only a similar few want to delve into economic nuance. Accordingly, candidates say stupid shit to win votes and we bounce from extreme bad choice to opposing extreme bad choice.

     8.  My summary sense is that the masses should not vote on economic policy, This would mean pretty much either a non-voting politic, or constructively removing economic policy from the voting event. An example voting arrangement that might accomplish this objective would entail a tiered representation such that the masses vote only for a local representative, who is empowered to vote for a proportioned number of state representatives, who are empowered to vote for a proportioned number of federal representatives, who would then exclusively vote for a national executive.  At the local representation level, the voting would be less colored by naive sensibilities regarding economics. For illustration, I have no idea what my State Representative thinks about Ukraine or the Fed Discount Rate.  I just think she is a smart, honest person.  Isn't that a better way.

Fat chance!