Are we consuming hypocrisy in an unsustainable way?
Sir, Jacob Weisberg’s “A path between puritanism and excess”, July 27, makes a great description about some of the legal and moral issues involved with decisions such as declaring illegal gambling on the internet.
Among his observations, we find that “Further restrictions will breed even more disrespect for the law, while creating exciting new opportunities for criminals” stands out as an issue that needs to be much more seriously considered, so that society stops fertilizing the markets where evil forces thrive and that, through any available means, are always trying to go for a takeover of the world.
It is high noon to call in some good economic analysis into any legislative procedure destined to prohibit something, to ascertain there is a due analyst of the supply and demand curve for the to-be-prohibited, and of the available resources for the fight. If the demand for the “bad” in question is inelastic, meaning that the “marginal” human urge for it is very strong, and the supply elastic, meaning that better returns will immediately place more offers of “bad” on the markets, and finally, the resources scarce, meaning mostly there is not a sufficient social consensus about the need for the fight, well then we are all better off forgetting it.
As a society we should never forget that hypocrisy, as a last ditch resource, has its limits too, and we should be careful not to consume it in an unsustainable way.
Among his observations, we find that “Further restrictions will breed even more disrespect for the law, while creating exciting new opportunities for criminals” stands out as an issue that needs to be much more seriously considered, so that society stops fertilizing the markets where evil forces thrive and that, through any available means, are always trying to go for a takeover of the world.
It is high noon to call in some good economic analysis into any legislative procedure destined to prohibit something, to ascertain there is a due analyst of the supply and demand curve for the to-be-prohibited, and of the available resources for the fight. If the demand for the “bad” in question is inelastic, meaning that the “marginal” human urge for it is very strong, and the supply elastic, meaning that better returns will immediately place more offers of “bad” on the markets, and finally, the resources scarce, meaning mostly there is not a sufficient social consensus about the need for the fight, well then we are all better off forgetting it.
As a society we should never forget that hypocrisy, as a last ditch resource, has its limits too, and we should be careful not to consume it in an unsustainable way.
Jacob Weisberg illegal internet gambling unsustainable consumption hypocrisy
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