Featuring the author Ilya Somin, Professor of Law, George Mason University; with comments by John Sides, Associate Professor of Political Science, George Washington University; moderated by John Samples, Director, Center for Representative Government, Cato Institute.
One of the biggest problems with modern democracy is that most of
the public is usually ignorant of politics and government. Many
people understand that their votes are unlikely to change the
outcome of an election and don’t see the point in learning much
about politics. This may be rational, but it creates a nation of
people with little political knowledge and little ability to
objectively evaluate what they do know. Ilya Somin examines
political ignorance in America and the problems it poses for
democracy. He looks at various options for solving this problem,
arguing that political ignorance is best mitigated and its effects
lessened by decentralizing and limiting government. Somin
provocatively argues that people make better decisions when they
choose what to purchase in the market or which state or local
government to live under, than when they vote at the ballot box,
because they have stronger incentives to acquire relevant
information and to use it wisely. Please join us for a lively
discussion of this important new book.
