The Ongoing Debate Over Political Ignorance: Reply to My Critics

Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society 27 (3-4):380-414 (2015)
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Abstract

ABSTRACTThe participants in this symposium raise many insightful criticisms and reservations about my book Democracy and Political Ignorance: Why Smaller Government Is Smarter. But none substantially undermine its main thesis: that rational political ignorance and rational irrationality are major problems for democracy that are best addressed by limiting and decentralizing government power. Part I of this reply addresses criticisms of my analysis of the problem of political ignorance and its causes. Part II assesses challenges to my proposed solution.

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Citations of this work

Popper, Weber, and Hayek: The epistemology and politics of ignorance.Jeffrey Friedman - 2005 - Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society 17 (1-2):1-58.
Is the public's ignorance of politics trivial?Stephen Earl Bennett - 2003 - Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society 15 (3-4):307-337.
After democracy, bureaucracy? Rejoinder to Ciepley.Jeffrey Friedman - 2000 - Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society 14 (1):113-137.

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References found in this work

Reasons and Persons.Joseph Margolis - 1986 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 47 (2):311-327.
Deliberation day.Bruce Ackerman & James S. Fishkin - 2002 - Journal of Political Philosophy 10 (2):129–152.
Voter ignorance and the democratic ideal.Ilya Somin - 1998 - Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society 12 (4):413-458.

View all 19 references / Add more references