2/ Jack Ma argues that China benefits from the stability of a one party system. It certainly avoids the need to appeal to an electorate with policies that economists would not approve of.https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-12-06/alibaba-s-ma-argues-china-benefits-from-stability-of-one-party …
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3/ Economists know voters stand in the way of implementing policies which economists most prefer. "Looming Elections mean less labor market liberalization" http://mason.gmu.edu/~gjonesb/10Percent.pdf …
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4/ Democracy isn't the only fundamental question where some elite factions clash with the masses. Another is free speech. Corporations often oppose it, firing people over social media messages or wrong statements of belief made at at work.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8Uj43gXp-Y …
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5/ Universities have also turned against free speech, with the asserted need for safe spaces as the rationale for why opposing views must be silenced. But the corporations, social justice warriors, and economists disagree on what sorts of views and people should have power.
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6/ Libertarian Open Borders economists are in the most interesting position. They have the greatest need to restrict democracy if they get their way on open borders for human movement. Their economic policies on trade and labor market regulation will be opposed by new voters.
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7/ Elites can lesson voter influence in ways short of revoking elections. They can also reduce free speech without outright repeal of the 1st amendment. They are farther along in speech restriction (e.g. fthreat of firings, bannings on social media) than on cutting voter power.
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8/ However, the US 2016 election outcome has certainly motivated many elite factions to look for ways to reduce voter power. Ditto with the elite reaction to populist backlash in Europe. Expect new strategies to influence the masses and also reduce their power.
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9/ However, middle class immiseration caused by automation will make populist anger greater and harder to control. Populist candidates will still have a lot of appeal no matter how much social media communications become restricted and alternative media become defunded.
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10/ I'm not trying to argue that the masses are wise in the voting booth. They aren't. But if whether reduction in influence by masses is a good thing depends both on which parts of the masses get less voting power and on how else elites get chosen and judged.
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11/ Elites often either put their own interests first in unfair ways. Also, elites suffer from their own group derangements and eagerly embrace various very false and damaging myths. For example, I think rule by college professors would be far worse than what we currently have.
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The main problem is that elite selection isn't based on competence and that elite ideas aren't under selective pressure for producing positive outcomes. Elite selection is for conformity. Elite ideas are under selective pressure to justify the prog state.
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