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> This is kind of a weird op-ed. It frames this as though the costs are all red marker, but the costs of rebuilding include labor and materials and help to rein
by esoterica 4y ago
> This is kind of a weird op-ed. It frames this as though the costs are all red marker, but the costs of rebuilding include labor and materials and help to reinvigorate local economies. I'm sure there is a net cost, but it has been serviceable so far.
This is a (literal, not figurative) example of the broken window fallacy.
- axiolite 4y ago> This is a (literal, not figurative) example of the broken window fallacy. No it is not. The broken window fallacy is the misunderstanding that breaking windows seems to be a net gain for the economy. The comment you are replying to specifically said such rebuilding will still have "a net cost."
- michaelmrose 4y agoIt absolutely is. We could have obtained exactly the same positives by building new things. The net difference in benefits is the entire insane per resident cost. It's exactly as bad as it looks.
- thaumaturgy 4y agoI added "I'm sure there is a net cost..." immediately after that line because I'm aware of the broken window fallacy, and I anticipated that some HN'er would want to pick that nit, and I was hoping to avoid the usual absurdity of absolutism vs. first-order-approximation. But, that doesn't seem to have worked for you and one other reply (so far). How would you have phrased this to prevent this misunderstanding?