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Voting Is Irrational!
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 email Michael Z.
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On the eve of the midterm elections, I'd like to take the time to polish off my masters degree in public policy and share with the world, the dark dirty secret of politics: Voting is irrational.
What the hell do I mean?
Let's begin by defining rational. A rational being acts in their own self-interest.
How does one act in their self-interest? This happens when one makes decisions between two possible outcomes. Let's say you wake up in the morning. You have two options: 1, go to work, or 2, lay in bed and watch porn.
A rational actor should do what's in their best self-interest, that is, go to work because going to work is more beneficial since it pays better than watching porn.
Only an irrational person works against their own self-interest.
What does this have to do with voting?
Easy: does someone who votes derive more benefits from voting than not voting?
In math form, this relationship is expressed: B > C
Benefit > Cost
What's the benefit of voting?
Well, let's say that you vote and your candidate wins. And the candidate you want will give you a million dollars. Cash. Right there in your hand. A million dollars.
In that case it would be rational to walk your ass down to the voting booth and cast your ballot.
Except, wait a minute. What's the chance that your vote will be the deciding vote?
If you don't show up, and he wins anyway, you still get the million bucks. It's only worth your time if you're the winning vote.
And as we all know from elections, how much does a single vote actually count for? Pretty much zero.
And what's a million times zero? Zero.
What's a billion times zero? Zero.
In other words, there is no self-interested benefit derived from voting.
The cost of driving to the voting booth, just that 50 cents of gas is more cost than the benefit derived from voting.
Cost of Voting > (Benefit of Candidate Winning)(Chance that Vote Counts)
Therefore, voting is irrational!
Holy governor, then why do so many people vote?
Let's think of another thing thousands of people do altruistically, like donating blood. Back in the day before my behavior got me disqualified from donating blood, I used to show up to the donation center, stick my arm out, and get painfully stabbed with a needle.
It was a long, painful process, that gave me nothing in return but some damn juice and cookies.
So why did I do it?
Because they gave me a cool sticker that said "I Donated Blood". Then I walked around all day telling people "I donated blood."
In other words, I donated blood for the social recognition of being a blood donator.
Or more specifically, I donated blood to identify myself with a very specific group of people.
And that's exactly why people vote. They vote to identify themselves, and therefore, it should come as no surprise that when people choose who to vote for, they don't choose the candidate that acts in their self-interest, they choose the candidate they identify with.
And that's exactly why it doesn't make any sense whatsoever for a candidate to appeal to a voter's self-interest. Because voting is itself against their self-interest.
If you want to get someone to vote for you, don't tell them what you'll do for them, instead, tell them why you're like them.
Voting is irrational, so don't appeal to rationality.
Voting is emotional, appeal to emotions.
They taught us that on the first day of graduate school. That's the day I decided to show up for class instead of staying home to watch porn. |
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