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40 sats \ 3 replies \ @Undisciplined 16 Jun \ on: Government-Funded Research: Bad for American Health, Wealth, and Freedom econ
They'll use the "baby and bathwater" metaphor pretty often as a counterargument, because no doubt there are some good projects funded by the state, and there are probably even good projects funded by the state that wouldn't have been privately funded.
However, since the state has no ability to accurately assess which projects are worthwhile, the only way to evaluate government science is by looking at the totality and weighing the costs against the benefits. Afterall, even if that money wouldn't have been used for science, it would have been used for something people value.
Sometimes the baby has to go out with the bathwater!! There is nothing the state does that is not for its own benefit and the benefit of those making up the state. There may be some good ones, but the people out in the economy would pay to do them if they were worthwhile.
The way they measure the worth of a life in dollars and use that value to do cost/benefit analyses is less than I like to see. How do you put a value on a life, other than what that person can contribute to the value of the market? Be that as it may, I don't think that they ever make these analyses because they would show that a lot of what they do is a negative value!
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How do you put a value on a life, other than what that person can contribute to the value of the market?
It's tough, though, because you have to put everything in commensurate terms to make a judgement, even if only implicitly. Otherwise you fall prey to the "One life is too many" arguments that are so often used by demagogues.
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Otherwise you fall prey to the "One life is too many" arguments that are so often used by demagogues.
That is an argument that I totally despise. Yes, one life is valuable, in fact, really priceless. But, to prevent anything from occurring that may cost a life is ridiculous, too. Life is dangerous and full of risks that nobody can predict or, sometimes, avoid. Accidents happen! People just have to be cognizant of the dangers and do what they will. That, IMHO, is the best people can do.
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