Considering that the typical reaction is to ban things instead of taxing or otherwise making them less convenient, I'm pretty happy with these sorts of policies

Considering that the typical reaction is to ban things instead of taxing or otherwise making them less convenient, I'm pretty happy with these sorts of policies. Perfect is the enemy of good and all that. There's all kinds of nudging I'm sure you can get behind, such as opt-out organ donation. Or would you rather everyone be forced to donate their organs at brain-death? Since "nudging" is rather new, there are many more opportunities for it to benefit society, either by discouraging a popular behavior or encouraging an unpopular one. For example, I despise loud cars and motorcycles. They have crazy externalities, yet there are few laws regarding them (and even those are rarely enforced). A Harley[1] riding through a dense city can distract and annoy thousands of people. Bystanders can even have their hearing permanently damaged. Some of my friends wish they were banned. I'm more sensitive to noise than most, but I disagree. A tax commensurate to their damage would satisfy everyone. Granted, such a tax would be quite steep. But if someone really wanted to, they could pay it. That's the sort of nudging I can get behind. 1. I realize not all Harleys are obnoxiously loud and many other vehicle brands can be annoying. It's just a stereotypical example.