From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!eagle!mhtsa!alice!npoiv!npois!houxm!houxa!houxi!houxz!hogpc!houti!trc Newsgroups: net.politics Title: The True Tragedy of the Commons Article-I.D.: houti.228 Posted: Thu Mar 10 08:45:56 1983 Received: Fri Mar 11 04:57:56 1983 Kenneth Almquist: Quote: ...self interest may sometimes benefit society, I dont't see that rational self interest can form an adequate basis for building a society. :End-quote In my article, I stated that self interest and altruism sometimes have the same results. I was NOT trying to justify self-interest when I said that. Rather, I was pointing out that, just because the results are the same, the principles behind them need not be. As for self interest being a good basis for a society, check some of my previous notes, or better yet, read some of Ayn Rand's works - "The Virtue of Selfishness" in particular. It answers many of the common objections to her philosophy. I am familiar with the "tragedy" of the commons. But I would make neither of the arguments you suggest - reduced grazing or political "allocation" solutions. I would go to the real cause of the problem - the existance of and dependence on a "communal resource". Note that the problem would not have existed if the Commons had been privately owned. Individuals would not have over-grazed their own land, or if they did, their neighbors that did not would not be harmed. As for self interest not being a good description of human behavior, ask yourself how often you deliberately act in a way that goes against the achievement of things that you value. (Love, mutual assistance in disasters, and so on ARE in one's self interest.) For a good definition of self interest see Ayn Rand's works. For a quick definition - Self interest is the attitude of seeking what is good for oneself. Rational self interest seeks things that really are good for oneself, as determined by the application of one's reason to an analysis of one's values. Tom Craver houti!trc