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First, article is talking more about ideological divide (democratic/republican) than ideological diversity (which would presumably mean many other viewpoints).
by js8 9y ago
First, article is talking more about ideological divide (democratic/republican) than ideological diversity (which would presumably mean many other viewpoints).
Not sure about ideological diversity, and how to even measure it, but ideological divide to me seems as an inevitable result of two party system (and majority voting system), as both parties struggle to get supporters. In order to do that, they often abandon or shift in ideology. The result is that the "ideological divide" is so very fluid that it is not really representative of any particular ideology.
In short, I think measuring the "ideological diversity" in terms of democrats/republicans is probably quite misleading.
- mseebach 9y agoSurely, true ideological diversity begins with (but indeed doesn't end with) the capacity to have democrats and republicans successfully coexist, something that parts of California and parts of the south, respectively, has struggled with.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- ihsw2 9y agoIn all honesty, I'm sure the south wouldn't mind the social welfare state with all its trappings if it wasn't draped in progressive supremacist ideology. Surely there's an opportunity here, driving forward things like public healthcare (or public education) sans the diversity rhetoric.
- matthewmacleod 9y agoSurely there's an opportunity here, driving forward things like public healthcare (or public education) sans the diversity rhetoric. What is "the diversity rhetoric"? Is it practically speaking possible to have a public healthcare system or a pubic education system without examining "diversity" in those services?
- praha14 9y agoOf course, Scandanavian countries have both of those things without being diverse. In some sense, high-quality public services have only been observed in non-diverse countries.
- iguy 9y agoMost of the ways in which public education could be better would improve it for everyone. But the NY Times (for example) is unable to discuss it without focusing on differences between groups of people. I think GP is saying that this gets people's backs up, and isn't necessary for making improvements. The reason it angers people isn't entirely irrational. For example, if you know that your next public school principal is going to be judged not on the total quality, but solely on the black-white difference, then you know that he will be tempted to game the rating system and make things worse for one group.
- confounded 9y ago> For example, if you know that your next public school principal is going to be judged not on the total quality, but solely on the black-white difference, then you know that he will be tempted to game the rating system and make things worse for one group. I find this claim astonishing. Do you have an example of it happening?
- iguy 9y agoNot this exact scenario, but I think almost everything has an element of this. Maybe a less charged example: Every time I hear about a green investment fund I wonder what the incentive structure is. Clearly if it was 100% green 0% returns, the manager would just donate your money to charity, cash his bonus check, and buy a yacht. Really it needs to have imperceptibly lower returns than the non-green competition, because the customers will notice whole percentage points, and will look elsewhere. Another: What's the incentive structure for everyone making decisions in how to dig a subway in NYC? Since they end up spending, I forget, say it's 4x as much as Paris, at least 75% of the spending seems to be decided by priorities other than actually having a train. But the voters are unable to stop this. Which of these is closer to the school board?
- kevmo 9y agoYes. Washington, DC is absolutely not an ideologically diverse place, by basically any measure. 93% (!) of the city voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016. Additionally, most people there, Democrats included, are extremely dedicated to the status quo. I've live in cities all across America, including DC 2015-2018 -- I actually usually cite it as the least ideologically diverse place I've ever lived. I generally like Marginal Revolution, but this article is bunk.
- rayiner 9y agoI work here and I agree. Everyone here thinks that the educated class should run the country. I had to move out to Anne Arundel to get away from it.
- moorhosj 9y agoWas there a time when people thought the uneducated class should run the country? Were most of the founders part of the “educated class”?
- walshemj 9y agoPretty much all of the revolutions in until Russia in 1917 where almost 100% like this listen to Mike Duncans revolutions podcast series and its a very common theme. I suspect some of the founders would have been OK with the franchise being limited to well off males.
- humanrebar 9y ago> ideological divide (democratic/republican) Political divide is probably more descriptive. But I agree. "Texas", "lesbian", "Mexican", and "Midwest" are not ideologies. They're identities.
- BaronSamedi 9y agoOr, perhaps, not identities but fuzzy sets.
- saalweachter 9y agoI think Texas is big enough to be a State, and identity, and an ideology.
- toasterlovin 9y agoI guess the American political parties have shifted over historical time, but they haven't shifted much in the last 4 decades or so. And there are pretty reliable ideological differences between democrats and republicans, across a wide variety of issues. Of course, you lose a lot of information with a binary classification, but the binary classification still tells you quite a bit in this case.