The Moral Roots of Liberals and Conservatives.

[astonas]

Re: The Moral Roots of Liberals and Conservatives.

Astonas --- the "Tragedy of the Commons" was an hypothesis and model put forward by Garrett Hardin. It turns out that there is no historical basis to this hypothesis, but rather only a biologist's belief that all living beings only act for selfish purposes. Hardin's stance has been very well debunked by historical facts. See - The Myth of the Tragedy of the Commons, The Fallacy of the Tragedy of the Commons, "The Tragedy of Common Sense, Part One: The Power of Myth" (A Critique of Garrett Hardin) and "The Tragedy of Common Sense, Part Two: From Ideology to Historical Reality" (A Critique of Garrett Hardin)

Thanks Rajiv,

I hadn't realized the specific "tragedy of the commons" paper had already been thoroughly discredited. Truth be told, I'd only heard the term used in a general sense, and never in relation to a specific study. I'll stop using the phrase, having read your links.

It was probably a poor choice of words on my part in any event. My intent was really to point to the more general concern of free-riders, which may not apply to "the commons" in particular, but can readily be seen in controlled studies in a variety of forms. One could also plausibly point to the effect playing a role in the tolerance of parasitic action in FIRE industries, which rely on, but often do not contribute to, a healthy P/C economy.

But as I've already pointed out, it looks like I need to do some more fundamental reading on the subject anyway before I can productively broach this topic.

[Rajiv]

Re: The Moral Roots of Liberals and Conservatives.

Astonas, this is not to say that things like what Hardin describes do not happen. They happen, but mostly under conditions of "dispute." In disputed matters, no maintenance can be performed, as performance of maintenance gives an implied ownership of the property. However, unmaintained property will rapidly revert to wilderness, and other owners (wildlife) take on the maintenance task. As long as there is life, all earthly property will be maintained in one form or another. Humans are very good at leaving behind lifelessness in the wake of their activities.