Comments on: Incentive, part 1

By: Nick Danger

Nick Danger — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:32:30 +0000

I suggest you read Abraham Maslow, and then just about anyone else on motivational theory. You’ll see you have over simplified and over generalized quite a bit. As a fan of logic, I’m sure you’ll recognize the fallacy.

By: golfwidow

golfwidow — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:23:18 +0000

That's part of why it took me so long to quit smoking. I used to "give myself" a cigarette as a reward for meeting a deadline, folding the laundry, or getting the groceries put away. .-= golfwidow´s last blog ..bits, bites, and bud =-.

By: Absurdist

Absurdist — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 03:47:15 +0000

Your logical steps to conclusion are broken down succinctly, and would appear to make logical sense. It's deceptively simple however. What you have not taken into account is the human capacity for introspection, creativity, compassion and empathy. Although most times people are predictable, human nature is such that, when one is faced with nefarious conditions or predicaments, he or she may change his or her predictable pattern of behavior considerably. And that behavior may very well be one of selflessness, valor, or any other characteristic that you have not mentioned above. We are quite unpredictable. This is why we, as human beings cannot be broken down through logical deduction like you have done above. .-= Absurdist´s last blog ..Why Your Money Is In Good Hands In Banks =-.

By: BlondeBlogger

BlondeBlogger — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:31:11 +0000

Applause, applause, applause!! While there are good people in the world who want to do the right thing and do works of charity, there are far more who would be perfectly content to just sit on the couch and do nothing. .-= BlondeBlogger´s last blog ..Stupid Haloscan =-.

By: Finn

Finn — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:14:07 +0000

Wow. That's cynical. Certainly there's some truth to it, but I don't think that's the whole picture. .-= Finn´s last blog ..Dramatic Irony =-.

By: Dave2

Dave2 — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 18:07:30 +0000

Make no mistake... I brush my teeth for that minty-clean breath that the ladies love! .-= Dave2´s last blog ..Cock! =-.

By: Sybil Law

Sybil Law — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:35:17 +0000

Ren kinda took my argument, with the volunteer and charity stuff. .-= Sybil Law´s last blog ..Oh no she di'int! =-.

By: Ren

Ren — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:05:23 +0000

I would say that incentives are more complicated than you imply. Why do people:
work as volunteer fire fighters?
give anonymously to charities?
continue working when they don’t need the money?
clean their dentures?

The taxes example is more difficult because of how detached people typically are from the benefits they receive from their taxes, of which there are many. This argues for taxes do be more directly related to their purpose, such as tolls or social security, but that’s very difficult in most cases.

To diverge a bit from your topic, can you think of a single large area of tax spending that you think a strong majority (>60%) of the population would be wholly in favor of reducing? (And “waste” or “inefficiency” isn’t a valid answer.)
.-= Ren´s last blog ..Turbo Answers Via Google Suggestions =-.