Really interesting. But I do have to comment that it's not just the Republican base/conservatives who want easy answers like cut taxes. Progressives also want everything to be easy, like pull out of Iraq, pull out of Afghanistan, create "green" jobs, etc. I think the problems we face are all very complicated, largely because they don't just involve the United States. Reality is a real bummer, and once someone says the issues are actually complex, people swing to the next person promising a quick fix.
The problem with complexity is that it can be used as a smokescreen for poor policy. a complex problem like global warming, for example, could be solved with "simple solution" - decrease the emissions of greenhouse gases. the economic and political complexities of curbing these emissions is often used as a excuse to do nothing.
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Really interesting. But I do have to comment that it's not just the Republican base/conservatives who want easy answers like cut taxes. Progressives also want everything to be easy, like pull out of Iraq, pull out of Afghanistan, create "green" jobs, etc. I think the problems we face are all very complicated, largely because they don't just involve the United States. Reality is a real bummer, and once someone says the issues are actually complex, people swing to the next person promising a quick fix.
The problem with complexity is that it can be used as a smokescreen for poor policy. a complex problem like global warming, for example, could be solved with "simple solution" - decrease the emissions of greenhouse gases. the economic and political complexities of curbing these emissions is often used as a excuse to do nothing.
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