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BadEconomics Discussion Thread, 13 October 2015 (self.badeconomics)

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[–]gorbachevonly gets the little questions right 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

This thread in /r/Foodforthought about student debt is pretty bizarre. It's not really badeconomics -- it isn't BE by any means to say "I think the government should make more transfer payments to me" -- but perhaps BadPersonalFinance. It's full of sob stories about student loans that really just drop my jaw in terms of how insanely irresponsible you had to be to get into those situations.

It's basically one long stream of: "I paid full tuition for a non-renumerative degree and then allowed interest to compound for 20 years while I jumped between low paying jobs and deferred payments."

[–]IntegraldsI am the rep agent AMA 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

I found this on another site. Thoughts?

I understand that journals aren't charities. But when so much is on the line, it is unacceptable for the peer review process to be as poor as it is. The process should more or less work. It should more or less fulfil the moral obligations to authors and to the discipline. Reviewers should not take 6-12 months to review an article. Editors should not use incompetent or overly hostile reviews as an excuse to keep the journal's rejection rate at 95%. Reviewers should not backtrack on their own opinions. Journals and referees may not be charities, but they do have some moral responsibilities to the author and to the discipline. Unfortunately, the peer review process does not work to fulfil its obligations.

[–]VodkaHazereligion+gvt=economics 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

I guess criticism against the peer review process will naturally end up being similar to the criticism against open source online projects.

I don't know much how journals can monetize the peer review process without opening itself up to bias. Naturally, good economists should be able to work out the perfect incentive structure

[–]irondeepbicycleI got 99 problems but technological unemployment ain't one 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

The Volkswagen emissions fraud would never have been uncovered under TPP.

[–]theJalden 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

because the TPP regulates german cars?

[–]Kelsig 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

Jesus that upvote score

[–]commentsrusur mom's ass wasn't an ordinal property of her age 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

Deaton won the Nobel. I schooled Deaton awhile back. So, you know.

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

There are numerials in your post. You schooled no one statist.

[–]iamelbenIn the long run, we're all /u/Integralds anyway... 4ポイント5ポイント  (1子コメント)

So I'm flying out to Vegas tonight to watch the democratic debate. Which candidate should I heckle mercilessly and why should it be Bernie Sanders?

[–]CALL_ME_ISHMAEBYFee-fi-fo-Friedman 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

Bernie Sanders because down memenomics don't real.

[–]throwachef 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

How to fix capcha? http://i.imgur.com/UBv8G58.jpg

I'm not a technologically savvy man, and at this rate my anon career will be over.

[–]kznlolIterated Deletion of Known Things 3ポイント4ポイント  (2子コメント)

Recommendations for a grad/advanced undergrad level econometrics textbook that explains shit in words instead of instantly going to math all the time, and preferably has solutions to all practice problems available?

I have been told Hayashi, but I suspect I would benefit from something below that level first.

[edit] tbh, preferably something the develops the statistics from like what you'd know coming out of 101, but I suspect that doesn't exist

[–]CALL_ME_ISHMAEBYFee-fi-fo-Friedman 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

These were mine: http://imgur.com/PdFUnm6.

[–]VodkaHazereligion+gvt=economics 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

You're not going to get much luck outside of Haya, Green or Woolridge, especially not if you want a grad level textbook. I recommended S&W for math, and I think it might get the intuition in words better than Woolridge (I'm currently studying both at the same time for an exam Wednesday). Woolridge is better overall, since it gets you more hands-on experience in the problems, though.

Both of those are freely available on pdf if you have the faintest google-fu. Check them out for yourself

[–]CutlasssI am the Lord your Gold 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

Since the other thread ended just after I put this in it.

Ben Bernanke Is Fed Up The former Fed chair says he's no longer a Republican because the GOP has lost its economic policy mind.

[–]laboreconomist3favorite words: labor, unemployment, trade 6ポイント7ポイント  (7子コメント)

Who's ready for the Bern v. Hilldawg v. Martie Master Debater v. LIEberman Lite v. Schrodinger's Democrat fight of the century tomorrow? Does anyone have a BE discussion/irc group like last debate?

[–]theJalden 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

Idk, not too thrilled to watch it, don't think it will be as much of a shit show as the GOP debates. There isn't much on where the candidates draw differences. Hillary is a little more Hawkish, Bernie a little more protectionist, not sure about the <1%ers but from what I've read they don't diverge much.

What really matters is who could be the most effective while in office. I do hope Good Ol' Joe throws his hat into the ring. He seems like he could be a reasonable president who congress won't cockblock at every opportunity.

[–]smoking_JayCutler6 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

Democratic debate drinking game:

Every time Sanders mentions "the 1%", "billionaires", "the rich", or "wall street bankers", take a shot. Take two if the question had absolutely nothing to do with rich people.

Any ideas for Clinton?

[–]ergonelsa 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

Can we get a megathread/ sticky going? As somebody who will probably be asleep it'll be interesting to read reactions

[–]wumbotarianKeynesian-on-a-cob 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

We will tomorrow.

[–]Shiloh86I didn't choose the Krug life, the Krug life chose me 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7MoXPxA5LM

[–]wumbotarianKeynesian-on-a-cob 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

kiwi irc #badeconomics

I'm there now and will be for like an hour and a half if y'all wanna join

[–]CatFortuneにゃんぱす! | Only understands simple explanations 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

I'm gonna sit in my hotel and miss time with my family we're visiting so I can chill in the chat with you guys!

Nah not really, I'm doing it so I can beer it up and have fun watching the debate. The chat is just one of them there "positive externalities" you folk talk of.

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 4ポイント5ポイント  (5子コメント)

Link about Ben Bernanke not being a republican anymore.

[–]wumbotarianKeynesian-on-a-cob 3ポイント4ポイント  (1子コメント)

The Recession certainly made many Republicans very extremist. The Tea Party and all that jazz. And of course you see that in the current primary too - the only people who are high in the polls are economically ignorant but say outrageous things. And its working. That's a problem.

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

I think we learned that the GOP base is more interested in insulting people than promoting right leaning economic policies.

[–]Shiloh86I didn't choose the Krug life, the Krug life chose me 5ポイント6ポイント  (1子コメント)

It bothers me to no end as a moderate Republican to see the far right doing so well and repelling all of the sane people.

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

I'm a moderate democrat I guess and I don't really have a home. You can join my party. We'll call it the "we are populist idiots party"

[–]laboreconomist3favorite words: labor, unemployment, trade 7ポイント8ポイント  (0子コメント)

I.Ben Bernake not being a republican

II. The Fed uses inflation to wage war on the currency

III. Ben is short for Benedict Arnold

Conclusion: the Fed and its Jewish overlords are trying to sell the United States back to the Queen.

Policy Recommendations: Switch to Bitcoin before it's too late.

[–]say_wot_againThe one true Noah Smith 4ポイント5ポイント  (6子コメント)

Did anyone see that Nobel coming? Did the committee see the hype that Card, Romer, Barro, and Bernanke were generating and decide "Nah, fuck that"?

[–]alexhoyerI used to bullseye Keynesians in my T-16 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

Who could have seen it coming? Who could be that wise?

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

What stocks are you buying currently?

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

I think someone here actually guessed Deaton. I think I commented on it earlier today or yesterday.

[–]LordBufo 1ポイント2ポイント  (2子コメント)

Probably? I don't think they like controversial political topics that much...

[–]wumbotarianKeynesian-on-a-cob 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

Shiller/Fama got pretty political

[–]LordBufo 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

Yeah, even though they tried to avoid politics by making sure both sides won the prize equally.

[–]CatFortuneにゃんぱす! | Only understands simple explanations 6ポイント7ポイント  (16子コメント)

People seemed to have fun with the Political Compass questions the other day, or at least I did. So I’m going to do one with ISideWith. I’ll try to ask fewer questions this time to be less of a space hog.

  • Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

  • Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

  • Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry? 

  • Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

  • Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

  • Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

  • Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

  • Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

  • Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

  • Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

  • Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

  • Do you support affirmative action programs?

  • Should the government decrease military spending?

  • Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans? 

  • Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

  • Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

  • Should the government fund space travel? So that turned out to be a lot of questions. Oh well! Answer away. Don’t feel like you have to answer all of them, I guess.

[–]Banal21 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

isidewith.com has me slightly left of center whereas politicalcompass.org has me slightly right of center. I'm having an identity crisis right now guys. Am I a dirty liberal or a racist conservative? I need help!

[–]IntegraldsI am the rep agent AMA 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

Probably not at current margins.

Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

If you can find a specific law they violated, then go nuts with it.

Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

No.

Should the government decrease military spending?

Yes, at current margins. There is probably scope for a 10-15% reduction in military expenditure before you'd really cut into deployment effectiveness.

Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans?

I think money is more fungible than this question permits.

Should the government fund space travel?

Sure, why the heck not.

[–]ergonelsa 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

No

Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

I'm not sure how it works in the states. Ideally i'd love to see the government legislate a bare minimum Health insurance plan which would be the lowest form of health insurance any company could legally provide, which would include free birth control.

*Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry? *

Yes, once wind power becomes more established and the technology improves, tax credits should be scaled back to start ups and smaller companies.

Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

Yes, wages should be based on skill, performance and role. I however do not know how you would legislate and enforce this.

Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

Ouch, potentially? If you find something obvious like billy bob gets paid $600,000 a year to attend meetings to promote the American Wine Industry then sure. But anything major like established health, infrastructure, education or science funding then nty.

Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

There should be an investigation / inquiry followed by reforms and appropriate safety nets implemented to try and prevent a repeat.

Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

I believe they help the workers. In some cases this helps the economy, in some cases it doesn't.

Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

Yes

Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

Unknown

Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes? Nope, sales taxes (dependant on target) would effect more people, generally of lower income, as opposed to property taxes.

Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

Nah

Do you support affirmative action programs?

As long as there is a general consensus that the affirmative action will be effective and will not negatively impact others #ParetoShill

Should the government decrease military spending?

Perhaps, maybe do an enquiry and run a productivity commission through the ranks to see what they can dig up. No cuts to verteran programs however.

Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans?

Not directly, i do support the lowering of student interest rates however.

Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

Yes

Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

As long as they are shown to be academically capable of understanding the syllabus / language. Edit: Skilled tradesmen should be able to attend a tech college to make sure their skills are up to snuff and gain qualifications.

Should the government fund space travel?

Bit confused on this one, I think the government should fund space exploration, if you are talking about commercial flights to space however, then no. NASA and other big name space agencies however should design standards and compliance checks that must be met however.

[–]The_Doc29 1ポイント2ポイント  (6子コメント)

Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

No, I read too many extreme right wings supporting the above idea

Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

Birth control should be covered its another type of preventive measures to reduce long term costs

Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry? 

Probably not carbon tax would be easier

Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

Yes but the 22 percent pay gap is a myth

Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

No

Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

No opinion not a legal kind of guy

Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

I think they help but I may be wrong

Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

I don't know the current tax rate

Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

I don't see the harm in this

Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

Wouldn't that target the poor more?

Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

Net neutrality is bad for competition

Do you support affirmative action programs?

In theory no but I read something how affirmative action is meant to go away in the future and I don't believe that day has come yet

Should the government decrease military spending?

Probably but this actually could have a negative effect

Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans? 

Just get rid of student loans

Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

A public plan yes

Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

Yes

Should the government fund space travel? So that turned out to

I think so landing on mars would give a bit of raise in morale for Americans

[–]Kelsig 1ポイント2ポイント  (5子コメント)

Grumble grumble, the 22 gap isn't a myth (well, for 2015 it is, its about ~18).

Women's median wage is only 82% of men's. This is a fact.

[–]IntegraldsI am the rep agent AMA 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

Women's median wage is only 82% of men's. This is a fact.

That fact has fairly little to do with "equal pay for equal work," though.

[–]Kelsig 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

I never hear that "statistic" mentioned besides right wing talking points and Obama's mishap several years ago.

[–]The_Doc29 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

Sorry I just think there are so many variables that take place.

I do support Hilary Clinton wanting to make it easier to sue for unequal pay but if wages were public then this could be easier to deal with but that may be an intrusion on a company's privacy

[–]Kelsig 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

Dank AEI link

Anyway, it doesn't matter about the variables. It's not a myth. There's a gap. You and Ms Sommers just believe it is justified by women's choices.

Over controlling for these variables is like claiming income inequality is a myth because of choices.

[–]bdubs91Maestro Today and Maestro Forever 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

Yes but educational attainment isn't outcome neutral so we can't control for other differences in wages.

No educational controls? You have omitted variables.

Educational controls? You have Lucas critique problems.

I wish to stress that if you believe in discrimination of woman its acting like a tax and creating a wedge, which is harming society.

[–]he3-1 5ポイント6ポイント  (2子コメント)

Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

Yes. Free association goes both ways, imagine the outcry when bigots start getting denied service.

Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

Yes but not all types without a co-pay.

Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry?

No.

Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

No.

Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

Assuming they are well targeted rather then slash & burn sure. There is lots of efficiency savings to be made.

Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

If someone can actually cite the statutes they have violated then sure, as long as they are joined by every still living member of congress since 1933.

Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

Which part of the economy?

Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

No.

Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

Yes.

Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

No.

Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

ducks Yes.

Do you support affirmative action programs?

No.

Should the government decrease military spending?

Yes.

Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans?

No.

Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

Which kind?

Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

Yes.

Should the government fund space travel?

No.

[–]MemberBonusCard 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

How can you before allowing a business to deny service to a customer based on the owner's religious beliefs but at the same time require insurance companies to provide birth control?

I mostly (or maybe completely?) agree with you but I don't know how to rectify those two potentially contradictory statements.

[–]LordBufo 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

  • Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

No. Discrimination is bad, mkay?

  • Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

Yes. Individuals should make their own moral decisions and legislation shouldn't force it upon others.

  • Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry?

Second best policy compared to pricing carbon correctly and funding basic energy research.

  • Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

Gender wage gap should be tackled, but I'm not sure how you'd enforce this and prevent lawyers from abusing it for frivolous suits. Manditory paternity leave might be a better place to start.

  • Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

No.

  • Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

Ask Bernanke not me heh.

  • Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

Depends. If there is a lot of monopsony power that the government can't reign in they help.

  • Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

Second best policy compared to a single dip income or consumption tax that shifts the burden way more onto the wealthy.

  • Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

Seems tangental to the problem of paying for them.

  • Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

Hell no. LVT would be better than property tax though.

  • Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

No.

  • Do you support affirmative action programs?

Yes conditional on the affirmative action being explicitly targeting disadvantaged groups and produces measurable improvements (e.g. Indian village councils and a quota of women members as described in Poor Economics).

  • Should the government decrease military spending?

Perhaps. Efficiency of spending seems more of an issue than overall amount.

  • Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans?

Hell yes.

  • Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

Second best policy to giving everyone government provided free insurance and legalizing all immigrants.

  • Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

Should be evaluated on same criteria as everyone else in terms of residency requirements.

  • Should the government fund space travel?

Yes.

[–]Shiloh86I didn't choose the Krug life, the Krug life chose me 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

I got 76% Marco Rubio, 73% Jeb Bush, and 72% Rand Paul on isidewith. But I'd never vote for Rand Paul, because he's an Austrian, and isidewith claimed that I was aligned with Marco Rubio on the environment, and I wasn't upon further examination.

Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

I'm going to go with yes. I have very mixed feelings about it, because I hate discrimination, but I think business owners should be allowed to decide who they sell to. Unless discrimination would be very widespread and common without laws preventing it, I'm generally anti-these types of laws.

Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

No. IIRC, health insurance companies don't ever make exorbitant profits with high mark-ups, and I don't see why a mandate of this kind is necessary.

Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry?

No. The environment is important, but subsidies of clean energy are the worst way to protect it.

Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

No, I don't really think so. There are lots of factors that go into salary, I'm pretty sure.

Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

Yes, and raise certain taxes (and lower others, and create some new ones).

Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

Well did they break the law?

Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

They help sometimes, but public sector unions are pretty bad. I'd be less opposed to them if they didn't run "think of the children"-type ads all the time for really dumb selfish causes, and I'd also be less opposed to them if they couldn't finance political campaigns.

Should the government increase the tax rate on profits earned from the sale of stocks, bonds, and real estate?

No this woud take away my gud liquidity (thank mr bernanke)

Should pension plans for federal, state and local government workers be transitioned into private plans?

If it would save money and not do more harm than good, yes.

Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

Maybe? I'd need to learn more about the property and sales taxes.

Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

OpposeNetNeutralityWithReddit

Do you support affirmative action programs?

Not really, the Economist had a really good article that implied lots of criticism of affirmative action.

Should the government decrease military spending?

No, we need to have a strong military, the defense budget should stay where it is.

Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans?

No, I would support increasing taxes on the rich, but I want the US to transition to equity-based financing of higher education.

Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

No, giving non-US citizens too much aid could lead to serious problems- I like immigration, though.

Should illegal immigrants be offered in-state tuition rates at public colleges within their residing state?

Only the children of illegal immigrants.

Should the government fund space travel?

Yeah.

[–]CatFortuneにゃんぱす! | Only understands simple explanations 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

  • Should a business, based on religious beliefs, be able to deny service to a customer?

No, I am against discrimination.

  • Should the government require health insurance companies to provide free birth control?

I don’t know the answers to a lot of these questions because I don’t know the utility of these things or how much money the government has to throw around. But I think there’s something to say for the investment of open and free birth control for public health and preventing unwanted pregnancies.

  • Should the federal government continue to give tax credits and subsidies to the wind power industry? 

Someone made a really good argument on here the other day, saying that you shouldn’t have both a carbon tax and a subsidy, because 1) it’s redundant, and 2) if you subsidize everything you’re wasting a lot of money and if you subsidize one, it could be the wrong one. I think a carbon tax would be the right thing to pressure the market to seek new alternatives.

  • Should employers be required to pay men and women, who perform the same work, the same salary?

I could’ve sworn I heard someone say that the wage gap is misleading, but that could’ve been bullshit. Anyways, I don’t know how this would work. If there happened to be a case where the women weren’t hard workers and the men were, should the men not get raises? I’m not anti-government, but it’s a blunt instrument and this seems a little surgical.

  • Should the government make cuts to public spending in order to reduce the national debt?

I put this here because this is one of those basic questions I should know the answer to but I don’t so I’m hoping someone will answer it.

  • Should Wall Street executives be criminally charged for their roles in the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis?

I have no idea what constitutes white collar crime or what these people even did. The financial crisis kind of happened in the background of my life while I was doing college and work, so I don’t know what happened honestly.

  • Do you believe labor unions help or hurt the economy?

I think the correct answer is that they play an important role, but they are prone to corruption. Maybe if they represented the workers better, people wouldn’t complain about them. But I don’t know.

  • Would you favor an increased sales tax in order to reduce property taxes?

I think this is the opposite of what people say we should do, no? Doesn’t sales tax affect the poor more than the rich, and vice versa with property taxes? Am I thinking of income tax? Whatever.

  • Should internet service providers be allowed to prioritize traffic for websites that pay higher rates than their competitors?

The IGM poll I just looked at came split between “agree” and “uncertain” on this matter. I guess I should listen to them over hysterical internet nerds. So maybe it’s not worth yelling about.

  • Do you support affirmative action programs?

I have no idea of the effectiveness of these programs, but something should be done.

  • Should the government decrease military spending?

Yes. I don’t want to put my hat in the ring for whether we should change our role in the world stage, but even if we don’t, I imagine there is some fat we could trim.

  • Would you support increasing taxes on the rich in order to reduce interest rates for student loans? 

This seems like a moderate proposal compared to universal free tuition. I just don’t know how much more the rich should be taxed more. You can’t just tax them whenever you want something, but maybe the taxes could be higher. There’s a limited amount of money you can get regardless though, so maybe we should sit on that play for now.

  • Should illegal immigrants be given access to government-subsidized healthcare?

I think there should be an absolute minimum standard of health care for anyone located in the country regardless of citizenship, but it should probably be better if you’re a tax paying citizen or resident. I do think it should be easier to become a citizen, however.

  • Should the government fund space travel?

I asked a friend his opinion on whether we should spend money on space travel. He said there are two main reasons to do this: first, the fact that so much science and technology even tangentially related to what we make for space travel comes out of our research. The second is that it’s just cool. Well let me tell you something buddy, I am the nation’s number one leading investment toward the progress of cool and no one’s giving me any money. But I’m all about those sweet technological advancements, so I say yes.

I keep getting Bernie Sanders when I do this quiz, but it was only a 2% difference from Hillary Clinton, and I’m not gonna doubt my gut over a 2% difference on an internet quiz.