Prof. Antony Davies: Why Government Fails, Explained

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  • čas přidán 8. 10. 2017
  • Governments don’t work the way most people think they do. Public choice theory explores why government fails through how voters, politicians, and bureaucrats actually make decisions. Professor Antony Davies explains.
    ‎️‍🔥 Watch Prof. Davies' Latest Video: 7 MYTHS ABOUT THE GREAT DEPRESSION - • Prof. Antony Davies: 7... ️‍🔥
    🎙️ Professor Davies also co-hosts a PODCAST! Find him and James R. Harrigan in the Words & Numbers podcast: wordsandnumbers.libsyn.com/ 🎙️
    Public choice economics is a field in economics in which we take what we understand about how humans behave, which is normally applied to humans in the private sector, and we apply this knowledge to humans in the public sector. What emerges is an interesting dichotomy between how we imagine government works and how it actually works.
    TRANSCRIPT:
    For a full transcript please visit: www.learnliberty.org/videos/pu...
    LEARN LIBERTY:
    Your resource for exploring the ideas of a free society. We tackle big questions about what makes a society free or prosperous and how we can improve the world we live in. Watch more at www.learnliberty.org/.

Komentáře • 1,9K

  • @LearnLiberty
    @LearnLiberty  Před rokem +8

    ‎‍🔥 Watch Prof. Davies' Latest Video: 7 MYTHS ABOUT THE GREAT DEPRESSION - czcams.com/video/q4ZMMH6LxXc/video.html ‍🔥

  • @stroys7061
    @stroys7061 Před 5 lety +1087

    I worked for the state government for 30 years. Private sector for 8 years. This lecture is spot on.

    • @bartdoo5757
      @bartdoo5757 Před 5 lety +47

      @Jan Sitkowski After it was privatised, British Railways added more drivers, more trains, and split to more than 100 companies. There were dozens of smaller engineering and maintenance companies created. How is the new government owned train system in California doing?

    • @jasonasdecker
      @jasonasdecker Před 4 lety +28

      @Jan Sitkowski You miss the fact that most metro transport systems are losing money, if not for the government subsidies they would not exist.
      www.citylab.com/transportation/2015/06/how-much-money-us-transit-systems-lose-per-trip-in-1-chart/395189/

    • @Galgus2000
      @Galgus2000 Před 4 lety +18

      Jan Sitkowski Utter nonsense, there is no need for government to be involved in creating or managing money aside, at most, simple contract enforcement.
      And even if you accept a legitimate role in government protecting you from aggressors, that is not a blank check justification for it to steal as much as it wants from whoever it wants. To do so would make it an aggressor, and hypocritical in its claims of protecting the citizens.
      That and gold, the historic money of choice, has value outside of being money. But the basis of money’s purchasing power ultimates rests on being able to exchange it for goods and services: the government is irrelevant there, and we’ve seen official state currencies hyperinflate into uselessness.
      The government does not rightly own me, my money, or all the land in the country: as the aggressor it should leave if it is not wanted.
      To expect peaceful citizens to leave the country because they dislike a law is like saying that if you live in a town controlled by a brutal mafia, you automatically consent to and have no right to object to their depredations.

    • @fredericksaturnine4167
      @fredericksaturnine4167 Před 4 lety

      Enjoy hell. Hope that liquid fire burns you good.

    • @illumencouk
      @illumencouk Před 4 lety +4

      Something to consider when making comparisons like these of the Private over the Public Sector is the 'false reality' in which these comparisons will ultimately be made. Basically the 'modus operandi' for successfully transferring Public Sector Services (non profit) to the Private Sector (ONLY profit) is seen everywhere - make the said 'Services' overly bureaucratic with the creation of more senior management, more executive roles. Then to cut costs these high salaried individuals, one after another, for the benefit of the taxpayer are made redundant or retire with golden handshakes and pension busting payoffs. Irrespective of their performance they all take large sums from the public purse. So the 'Services' performance under Public Sector control is deliberately made to under perform whilst simultaneously rising in operating costs and this 'ethos' is maintained thru tried and tested 'mismanagement' methods. Eventually those paying for the Services (You) and those using said Services agree the Service is broken and not fit for purpose. Costs have spiralled out of control while service level kpi's have dropped across the board. Up steps the Private Sector to save the day. Profit making is now the focus, not the Service. This is exactly how our NHS (National Health Service) is 'deliberately' being broken right now. Annually renewable Private Individual Health and Insurances policies for every man, woman and child who can afford it, amounts to a shit load of greed and ultimately power.

  • @909sickle
    @909sickle Před 4 lety +769

    "The politicians are also human beings"
    I question this premise

    • @nustada
      @nustada Před 4 lety +58

      They are human beings who get to commit theft and murder, because they won a popularity contest that they happen to control.

    • @tyvamakes5226
      @tyvamakes5226 Před 4 lety +11

      I say they are. Some read Machiavelli's prince, some heard Oswald Mosley's speeches, some others spent their time playing chess while making CZcams Rewind 2018.

    • @thomaspick4123
      @thomaspick4123 Před 4 lety

      Yes. That is an oxymoron.

    • @cocomonglover
      @cocomonglover Před 4 lety +6

      they're lizard people

    • @arrrseeingeye
      @arrrseeingeye Před 4 lety

      Ahh ha, so do they...

  • @paulaswam5909
    @paulaswam5909 Před 5 lety +348

    randomly found this guy in suggestions and I was mesmerized by his lectures. 30 minutes felt like 5, he's amazing at lectures.

  • @prohet-econo
    @prohet-econo Před 2 lety +47

    This guy is a LEGEND! Was lucky enough to have him for multiple courses.
    Would legitimately fail half his class the first week to get rid of the fluff pulling the rest of the class down to maximize everyone's education, including the people he failed🤣

  • @LordsofMedia
    @LordsofMedia Před 5 lety +474

    This entire presentation was done so he can rant about the Pennsylvania DOT. BRAVO!!!

    • @chrisnebinger5380
      @chrisnebinger5380 Před 5 lety +3

      FYI, I just visited the site, and it has been overhauled. It doesn't look like this anymore.

    • @leefamily9000
      @leefamily9000 Před 4 lety +22

      I think he used the DOT because it's a great example of a failed government system. He could have also used the TSA.

    • @BobWidlefish
      @BobWidlefish Před 4 lety +3

      *@Joel* the TSA is a great program:
      czcams.com/video/JnX-D4kkPOQ/video.html

    • @festivalflightcrew2895
      @festivalflightcrew2895 Před 4 lety +9

      They built a tv show around how bad Pennsylvania DOT is. So yeah I think I understand his frustration

    • @LordsofMedia
      @LordsofMedia Před 4 lety +1

      @@festivalflightcrew2895 Oh yeah I forgot about Small Wonder.

  • @lachlangro
    @lachlangro Před 6 lety +424

    When I first started work at age 20, I noticed the attitude of public servants first-hand and couldn't help but conclude that if these guys had competition, they would be history. Also if I had to tell my phone company what calls I have made during the financial year and from where and to where and to whom and for how many minutes and on what device and I had to figure out how much money I owed them and then go to an accountant to get it all checked and verified and face a fine if I miscalculate and then pay both the phone company and the accountant, I would switch to another phone company in an instant. Pity I can't do the same with the my taxes which are even harder to figure out.

    • @superchuck3259
      @superchuck3259 Před 5 lety +7

      And in the end all taxes end up at 10-20% gravitating around 17%.

    • @Josh420-13
      @Josh420-13 Před 5 lety +10

      Lachlan Groenveld well soon u may only have 1 phone company. The biggest criticism I have for everyone including the speaker. Private business is monopolizing. One private company to run one type of service is happening and the politicians, have allowed the laws that protect monopolies change. Cause politicians r paid of by big business. So soon u will be treated like shit. Go call ur phone company for customer service, is it great? Nope. And they still have a little bit of competition. Imagine when there is none. Privatizing everything is not the answer. We need to stop the thinking that we can’t be informed without it taking too much of our effort. And get informed to actually vote people in office that aren’t funded by big business. That doesn’t need to make laws to help big business but can help average Americans. Not give rich people big tax breaks anymore.

    • @jrstf
      @jrstf Před 5 lety +21

      @@Josh420-13 - Big business has zero votes. No big business ever elected a politician.
      The biggest tax breaks go to the poor, the poorer half of the country pays no income tax, I can't imagine a bigger misplaced tax break than that.
      I wanted phone service from Verizon, I hate Verizon, very bad experiences with them. So I bought from PagePlus, Verizon provides the service, PagePlus isolates me from Verizon. Won't solve most people's needs, but for me, I had a choice and it has worked very well.
      Government though is by definition a monopoly, as detailed in great depth in this video. Nobody has an alternative.

    • @Josh420-13
      @Josh420-13 Před 5 lety +5

      Bryan Jensen wow. U r naive. Big business, wealthy people have a lot of control over politicians. Politicians don’t dare go against their big donors for fear no more donations or donations to an opponent. This is how the game works in a lot of cases. Whoever is funded the most usually wins. Especially if the other guy only has a little. Politicians r also guaranteed high paying jobs by lobbyists to vote their way on a bill. This is the problem with government.
      U even say the government is bad. Yet u won’t except the main reason y. We elect the wrong people that have been funded by big business and they influence the politician to do what they want. We need to get big money out of politics. U say government is a monopoly. But we can vote in or out the politicians. We can’t get rid of someone when a company monopolizes a service. Also, even not a monopoly but just even 2 or 3 can make it so they will stay. They r too big too fail. And then we bail them out but say screw u to the public.

    • @valkyriefrost5301
      @valkyriefrost5301 Před 5 lety +2

      @@jrstf - in my area, cable and internet are provided by Comcast. It's a monopoly. If I want internet access, I have no choice but to go with Comcast. As such, Comcast can charge pretty much what ever they want and I either pay their price or I don't have internet access. My in-laws have no cable TV and no internet access because they cannot afford Comcast's high monthly prices. They live in an area where over-the-air TV is no longer available.
      So, the private sector is no panacea as it can be just as bad, if not worse than the gov't monopoly when given the chance (profit incentive) to dominate a market. Read up on Standard Oil and you'll get a better understanding why we need both private sector and gov't oversight of the private sector.

  • @darrellbrown2551
    @darrellbrown2551 Před 2 lety +16

    Spent 11 years in the British Civil Service in IT, just felt like banging my head everyday. The sheer reluctance to either modernise or change was just astounding. Ending up joining the Police which was much more results based and if you could do anything to either save money or make something more efficient it was adopted.

  • @AgustinaNaldiSenk
    @AgustinaNaldiSenk Před 5 lety +56

    Everyone should watch this.
    Greetings from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

    • @ragon747
      @ragon747 Před 4 lety +1

      Learn about libertarianism, you will be even more surprissed

  • @avowliberty2250
    @avowliberty2250 Před 6 lety +1529

    This guy gives great lectures.

    • @BeerByTheNumbers
      @BeerByTheNumbers Před 6 lety +19

      I agree! Glad Learn Liberty is featuring him more!

    • @samr2669
      @samr2669 Před 5 lety +3

      Agreed, but I don't agree with his summary of the impact or benefits of Tariffs in terms of an economic force to benefit a country.

    • @MrRickstopher
      @MrRickstopher Před 5 lety +5

      @Stevo Devo Damn man. "The internet and access to the information it provides reduces the information cost of the individual voter." That's all you said in aaaall that pretentious babling. Get some friends man, that was painful.

    • @tomservo75
      @tomservo75 Před 5 lety +7

      @@BeerByTheNumbers Proof that not all professors are Marxist-leftists. Only about 90% of them.

    • @flowerpt
      @flowerpt Před 5 lety +1

      I love how he uses physical location to reinforce the message and isn't afraid to repeat the previous piece of information when tying them all together.

  • @bergonius
    @bergonius Před 6 lety +568

    More people need to watch this.

    • @infomation1751
      @infomation1751 Před 6 lety

      bergonius people need to realise that change takes time

    • @reverendbluejeans1748
      @reverendbluejeans1748 Před 6 lety

      Can you dig it blood.

    • @25Soupy
      @25Soupy Před 6 lety +15

      No, everyone should watch this. This is what should be taught in schools.

    • @ragon747
      @ragon747 Před 5 lety +2

      I did a contribution doing translation and submit a subtitle in my language for this video. But I did see the response yet...
      Anyone knows how those contributions works? we need to wait until the owner accepts our subtitle submission?
      If there is subtitle in my language I could spread this video more easily

    • @cspike9061
      @cspike9061 Před 4 lety +5

      The entire voting population needs to watch this.

  • @CptWacko
    @CptWacko Před 4 lety +16

    The part on the DMV is hilarious, you can feel the rage they filled him with.

  • @Ctajm
    @Ctajm Před 4 lety +119

    Moral of the story: "If you aren't cynical, you don't understand."

    • @danil874
      @danil874 Před 4 lety +14

      Don`t see cynicism in this. Personal interests move the people. So what? A lot of people have doing good things for others in their personal interests. Some don`t, and have only personal. That is just how the life works, it is not cynical

    • @lancewalker6067
      @lancewalker6067 Před 3 lety

      PRAXOLOGY PRAXOLOGY what is the distinction between the cynics of Greece and skeptics?

    • @smokedbrisket3033
      @smokedbrisket3033 Před 2 lety

      @@lancewalker6067 greek cynicism concerned itself with morals. skepticism is about how we learn (epistomology).

  • @BeerByTheNumbers
    @BeerByTheNumbers Před 6 lety +431

    "A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship." -- Alexander Tytler

    • @ericbess5917
      @ericbess5917 Před 6 lety +94

      As much as I will get yelled at for wanting to silence voters, this is why I think it would be nice (not possible, but nice) if people living primarily on government welfare were not allowed to vote. The founding fathers tried to create a system where the people voting were those who had stake in the outcome. This is the real reason women didn't vote, btw, because men were the primarily land owners and it was assumed that they might consult with their family - one household, one vote. It think it was correct to have women vote once society shifted, but I think it was wrong to lose focus on why women couldn't vote originally when we did so - instead, it should have opened up to recognize women as land owners, but perhaps done in a way to maintain one household, one vote or some such. And it was originally properly owners that could vote.
      The issue I have is that we currently have a conflict of interest where one side can maintain their governmental seats by redistributing wealth. I think as a whole, Americans are generous people and don't have a problem with a governmental safety net. But unfortunately there is such a conflict of interest right now that the so-called "safety net" that exists creates a disincentive to self-sufficiency. It is very possible that this is intentional to retain voters since once people become self sufficient, they no longer need to make sure their candidate remains in office to keep giving them the free handout. If we didn't have the conflict of interest, perhaps we would instead have a system that helped people out who fall upon hard times, but expected those people to actually make an effort to pull themselves back up when they were in a position to do so.

    • @BEERNBBQBYLARRY
      @BEERNBBQBYLARRY Před 6 lety +3

      Right on!

    • @jacywilson
      @jacywilson Před 6 lety +11

      That is misattributed, but a good quote nonetheless.

    • @ibtgb2
      @ibtgb2 Před 6 lety +25

      Good thing we aren't a democracy. True democracy is real evil. The majority can infringe on the minority. We're a constitutional republic.

    • @kevinyoung947
      @kevinyoung947 Před 6 lety +6

      Or more likely politicians realize they can sell voters x,y and z and receive more votes

  • @VaShthestampede2
    @VaShthestampede2 Před 5 lety +42

    "For what each individual wills is obstructed by everyone else, and what emerges is something that no one willed"
    -Engels

    • @MrHyde-fu5sr
      @MrHyde-fu5sr Před 3 lety +5

      I think its ironic how Engels appears to show signs of understanding the need for individualism over collectivity here, yet he later objects to individualism in support of the collective.

    • @VaShthestampede2
      @VaShthestampede2 Před 3 lety +4

      @@MrHyde-fu5sr They eventually came around understanding the efficacy of markets. Thomas Sowell's "Basic Economics" goes into that a little bit

  • @user-fe4re8be6w
    @user-fe4re8be6w Před 2 lety +26

    I love this guy. Totally unemotional while explaining the absurdity of government. I laugh the whole time, especially because I live in the same city/state as him... "I write a check every 5 years...to these people!"😂

  • @bobkaiser8782
    @bobkaiser8782 Před 2 lety +12

    "We're going to pass a law that takes $10 from everyone in group A, burn half of it..."
    Pretty much explained how govt works in half a sentence.

  • @SunnyGault
    @SunnyGault Před 6 lety +48

    This is the best explanation I've ever heard about how government truly works and how it compares to the private sector. Awesome job!

    • @superchuck3259
      @superchuck3259 Před 5 lety +3

      Some large companies have the same issue. They have stiff political structures and resistance to change. Just like a website that directs you to mail things in!

    • @superchuck3259
      @superchuck3259 Před 5 lety +1

      @Liberty AboveAllElse In some cities, there are dudes that do 3 city jobs and make a killing. Insane!

    • @XlPackratlX
      @XlPackratlX Před 8 měsíci

      ​@superchuck3259 Well no they don't. Everybody who does business with those corporations can walk away. Like Prof. Davies mentioned, corporations don't have the guns; governments do. You literally have no choice! And so the government has no incentive to serve you better than the private sector would.

  • @michaelpaliden6660
    @michaelpaliden6660 Před 6 lety +66

    How the government works VS how we think it works.
    My thought is It doesn't work.

    • @joecoolioness6399
      @joecoolioness6399 Před 5 lety +6

      And unfortunately I think that is true for all forms. I think what the USA has is the best of all of them, but it still sucks.

    • @genericusername7959
      @genericusername7959 Před 4 lety +3

      @@joecoolioness6399 "Indeed it has been said that democ­ra­cy is the worst form of Gov­ern­ment except for all those oth­er forms that have been tried from time to time.…" - Churchill

  • @chrissnyder2091
    @chrissnyder2091 Před 3 lety +12

    I'm a libertarian and I stumbled across this video by accident but oh my God what a gold mine. Everything I've ever tried to explain to friends and family in one great video. This site rocks!!!

  • @fefootinyourface4015
    @fefootinyourface4015 Před 3 lety +14

    I have to show this to my daughter she just graduated last summer, all they teach was safe space, micro aggression and white Privilege at UC San Diego and we are Asian. She said it was a waste, the only good thing is that she transfer there for two year from Jr college . I think she can learn more in this video than two years at UCSD.

    • @elzoog
      @elzoog Před rokem

      "and we are Asian"
      You are considered to be "white adjacent" by these people. You are successful as an Asian because of racism (i.e. you adopt "white" values such as showing up on time, and putting in the work).

  • @WolfStrength
    @WolfStrength Před 6 lety +160

    Great video! "Politics without romance," indeed. Once you think about these things, it's astonishing how often markets are held to a perfect utopian standard where if the first approximation isn't an absolutely perfect market, then government intervention is assumed necessary, without a thought for the first approximation failures of the political market. Prof.Davies does a great job here of clarifying some of the reasons behind political failures. His podcast, "Words and Numbers," is also well worth a listen.

  • @BaronSloth
    @BaronSloth Před 6 lety +429

    I've been a subscriber for a long time and seen him on this channel before and always enjoyed it, but this one and the previous Inequality Myths video are some of the best content I've ever seen on these topics, not just here, but anywhere. Keep up the excellent work.

    • @watchdealer11
      @watchdealer11 Před 6 lety +4

      Agreed, Antony is a personal hero!

    • @bdonovable
      @bdonovable Před 6 lety +3

      New to the channel and "Inequality Myths" and this video are the first I have watched. I completely agree and am trying to figure out who in my friend/family circle will benefit the most from hearing these coherent/concise liberty messages. In the Inequality Myths video, I only wish "equality of outcome" was indicated as being "enforced by the state-owned monopoly on violence/barrel of gun paid for by stolen tax dollars"

    • @monzer661
      @monzer661 Před 5 lety +1

      i agree but i was really looking forward for him to give a solution
      like what he did in the "government debt myths" video
      and he didn't even though its a great video
      i would imagine the solution being something like:
      reviews done by citizens and then analyzed yearly so it will effectively decide the fate of the bureaucrats and weather or not they continue serving in office
      and giving them an average pay for the first year and a decent raise depending on their reviews and satisfaction rates
      the raise goes up to a limit so that it serves the citizen but not abuse tax money
      and then they have to maintain satisfaction to keep serving or else they get canned immediately
      and in that system it's actually good to have a bad bureaucrat every once and a while because it will reduce tax money needed when he leaves office
      and will be replaced with a new guy who is very motivated to get great reviews
      what do you think ?

    • @MP-db9sw
      @MP-db9sw Před 5 lety

      The 5 Inequality Myths video was mostly propaganda.

    • @alexanderschmoldt2982
      @alexanderschmoldt2982 Před 5 lety

      well, its the fucked up voting system like eletoral collage, in germany or spain they have a list, so each vote it counted , and the local representatives are calculated against it. so its confused gerrymandering completly in it. which is a ssparate issue of the problem before, and has been solved in many countries.
      and the first problem he ingores that the society he proposd in situation a wanted aminimum wage law by majority, and than vanished this when presenting b. so i am in 15min. and aready spotted several argumentativ loopholes. which have nothing to do with choice theory. but rather old consitution and electoral system which where never improved over 200 years.
      cause for example for the presidential election in 1800 with out telefon rarely any telegraph and a huge country, it made total sense to have an electoral collage meet up. but in 2000, with telefegrapht telefon, radio, tv and internet that kind of thing it totally stupid. and outdated.
      the only thing actually having anything today with choice is the having topay 20 bucks to vote thing.
      so no its not a a good work.

  • @69ElChistoso
    @69ElChistoso Před 3 lety +9

    I love this guy. I listen to him three more days, memorize his arguments, file his sources, and I'll never lose another argument again, ever!

  • @Alon77G
    @Alon77G Před 6 lety +71

    One of the best lectures I have ever seen. Good job and thank you.

  • @plumlogan
    @plumlogan Před 5 lety +61

    I love how this started out very academic, and then quickly turned into Falling Down

    • @johnsphpaulin1162
      @johnsphpaulin1162 Před 5 lety +8

      Isn't it funny how most of the problems he mentioned either only exist in the US or are greatly reduced outside of the US. It's almost like he didn't take the time to examine how the intricacies of government structure could affect people's incentivises and instead just assumed that if it's a problem in the US it must be a problem systemic to all government structure as a whole.

    • @onekerri1
      @onekerri1 Před 5 lety +8

      EndorBornV01 - he wasn't speaking of places outside the U.S. You were trying to apply was was said, to a different place other than the U.S., which was why it didn't work for you.

    • @onekerri1
      @onekerri1 Před 5 lety +3

      plumlogan - you're a big govt person, therefore you're given a pass, as you will never be able to make sense of this.

    • @plumlogan
      @plumlogan Před 5 lety +2

      @@onekerri1 lol - huge swing and a miss

    • @johnsphpaulin1162
      @johnsphpaulin1162 Před 5 lety +1

      @@onekerri1 If he was only speaking of the US then his conclusion ignores the possibility of reform in favor of pushing a narrative, and idk if that's better or worse.

  • @fatdaddydubb9441
    @fatdaddydubb9441 Před 4 lety +2

    Our American society must continue to champion and promote academia and the professors who proactively go out of there way to inform us of this particular content. It's vital that we remain vigilant in sourcing knowledge that truly benefits a well-rounded understanding like the knowledge imparted by Prof. Antony Davies.

  • @gblargg
    @gblargg Před 4 lety +19

    "For the common good."
    Stop right there. I think we found the problem.

    • @SovereignStatesman
      @SovereignStatesman Před 4 lety +2

      No, the problem is that THE PEOPLE DO NOT CONSENT TO THEIR GOVERNMENT.

    • @gblargg
      @gblargg Před 4 lety +4

      The common good is a myth, a tool used by central planners and other tyrants.

    • @gblargg
      @gblargg Před 3 lety

      @Fluffybrute Not sure what you mean. I'm an individual. You are an individual. We both have different situations and strategies. In a free market we can voluntarily interact, without coercion. These are concepts that help us understand property and non-aggression, and to be able to easily see the coercion involved with governments everywhere.

  • @watchdealer11
    @watchdealer11 Před 6 lety +136

    God, I wish I had taken econ instead of engineering. I took 3 econ classes in my undergrad (2 were electives), and none of the professors come close to Antony.

    • @danlaub7156
      @danlaub7156 Před 5 lety +15

      I teach college economics, and I agree that few professors come anywhere close to what Davies does.

    • @benjaminnelson5455
      @benjaminnelson5455 Před 5 lety +9

      Be glad you didn't, economists have a niche, but it's just a niche. The ones that really understand economics you'll rarely hear from, because they're snapped up by corporations that need their skills. Most of the rest either teach or work for the government, where being wrong doesn't cost them as almost nobody notices, because maximizing their happiness requires remaining employed somewhere.
      Engineers, on the other hand, everyone needs in some capacity, so even the less skilled ones can find private sector work and improve themselves.

    • @bbbbrrrzzt5166
      @bbbbrrrzzt5166 Před 5 lety +4

      Few economists have a strong enough maths background to understand social choice theory. Check out Amartya Sen's work on the subject, he writes a great chapter in the Handbook. Also, if you're interested in market failures in general, definitely check out Poor Economics. It shines a bright light on the downsides of thinking too systematically or perhaps to Westernly about development economics.

    • @qstunrr
      @qstunrr Před 4 lety +1

      William Loudermilk
      I've been on the search for good mentors. You are an exceptional example of someone I should be talking too. What's the over under I could be of some service to you in exchange for mentorship in any capacity?
      My stack is computer science, physics, and BME but essentially shadow studying economics and sociology to balance out precisely what you've mentioned.

    • @JBattler
      @JBattler Před 4 lety

      @William Loudermilk The engineers share that with economists.

  • @bigdogtim7998
    @bigdogtim7998 Před 5 lety +3

    This is an awesome teacher of real life lessons and very accurate in his take.
    1- I’m from the private sector and work for a School System’s Construction department due to physical disabilities for the past 9 years. Previously, I worked in their Building Services Department where no matter what I corrected, I seamed to make someone angry with me, when all I cared about was the Students & Teachers Learning Environment. I have always wondered why no one wants to hear how I succeeded and many times, I get beat up for producing too much, when I’m Handicapped. Fortunately, I was traded, without any raise to the Construction Department because I fit in better with all the other outside hires that worked there. Finally, it took a sitout of 5 weeks to get the promotion I was promised when hired, if I proved that I knew all I had on my Resume. My Job Description was so out dated, my Director agreed that I didn’t have to do anything, No Joke.
    2- I live in Maryland which is a constant Blue State and like the example of N.C., Politicians constantly move the lines to make sure the State remains Blue, even though a very large Majority of the State is Conservative Red.

  • @brandonchung661
    @brandonchung661 Před rokem +1

    21:48 brilliant explanation of the difference in motivation between the public and private sectors

  • @pawnshopfan614
    @pawnshopfan614 Před 2 lety +2

    Whoa! Am learning economics for free. Thanks Prof Davies

  • @kepstein8888
    @kepstein8888 Před 5 lety +13

    The DMV bit was epic.

    • @johnagcaoili9389
      @johnagcaoili9389 Před 4 lety +4

      Ikr... you can feel years worth of pent-up rage leaking out

  • @istvanmeissler2238
    @istvanmeissler2238 Před 5 lety +20

    I am old and know most of this information but this man really explains it very well indeed.

  • @TheSpicyLeg
    @TheSpicyLeg Před 5 lety +1

    My wife once worked for the DMV in PA. What she would tell me goes from astonishing to outright blood boiling angry.
    For example, PennDOT would snail mail people their license renewal notice, along with a form for having a new photo taken. They sent this out 3 months before the license expired. You could renew the license online and pay the cost there, but had to go to the DMV for the photo. They would put a 10 day limit on the camera form and send it out super early. That way, when the person invariably waited until it was more convenient or closer, they needed a new camera form. Which costs 5 dollars, by the way. There could pinch off another 5 bucks with this trick.
    Then there was the whole drivers license test. Workers were told to make kids wait for long periods, because they’d get impatient. Added on top was nervousness and anxiety, and a greater chance to fail. They’d have to retest, which meant more fees and such.
    It’s not even remotely funny how bad service is there. I once had a person at the DMV have earbuds in listening to something while supposedly assisting me. I had to keep repeating myself in a loud as hell voice because he couldn’t be bothered to remove them.

  • @martinkunev9911
    @martinkunev9911 Před 5 lety +2

    Very good introduction, but I think there is much more to be said on the topic.
    Interesting thing is here in France there is not that much difference between public and private sector in terms of quality of service. In fact, private banks for example offer awful service.

  • @njabuloshobede7407
    @njabuloshobede7407 Před 3 lety +9

    Thank you for the wonderful presentation. In 33 min, you summed up my research project that was giving me such a hard time explaining. Well done

  • @MzClementine
    @MzClementine Před 4 lety +7

    Well well. I have been schooled. Brilliant talk. Thank you endearingly for the simplicity of how the government works. I can’t wait to learn more. I shared this with my son this evening. And yes.. PA is utterly for those we elect for the patrons not civilians of Pa. Goodness, your delivery of this message hits home with me, as well it was much needed.
    Cheers

  • @StillNotSpeaking
    @StillNotSpeaking Před 4 lety +1

    They only government education I received in public school was School House Rock I am a bill. You have no idea how grateful I am for this🙏🏿 thank you

  • @stevehastings2010
    @stevehastings2010 Před 2 lety +1

    This is an excellent summation of why I am a minarchist (i.e. I want the government to be small, and do only the things I think need to be done by government).

  • @paulangeli9710
    @paulangeli9710 Před 6 lety +210

    Great video. The only mistake he made was referring to politicians as "humans ". Lol

    • @BeerByTheNumbers
      @BeerByTheNumbers Před 6 lety +12

      Clearly they are reptilians! #stuipidconspiracy

    • @andrewphilos
      @andrewphilos Před 6 lety +27

      Wasn't the whole point of the video that politicians _are_ humans, they're just placed into positions of bad incentives? :P

    • @PurestPosition
      @PurestPosition Před 6 lety +9

      Run for office and try to get elected. The process doesn't take away your humanity, though you'll likely lose to a sociopath.

    • @erwinnijs1
      @erwinnijs1 Před 6 lety +2

      Andrew Weber, If the only problem is that they are placed in a position of bad incentive, you could simply solve it by putting them in a position of good intensive, like panarchy or multi-government, where the voters become customers.
      It is not the only problem however. Lots of people, not only politicians, have an innate desire for power or in other words, a desire to force their will onto others. If we don't find a solution to this problem, the problem with politicians and governments won't get resolved.

    • @nsg_kuunda4786
      @nsg_kuunda4786 Před 6 lety +2

      Early in the video he also says "say I have $10 & burn half" when the slide showed $12.

  • @swsholdingeu
    @swsholdingeu Před rokem +3

    This is absolutely amazing. Thank you so much. I'm finishing a Master's in Foreign Affairs and Diplomacy, and I chose Public Policy and Economics. I am so glad I did. And this well timed and to-the-point seminar makes for a great recap. Also, it's typical of American academia - very clear, and to the point. Minimal jargon too. Fantastic.

  • @IntangirVoluntaryist
    @IntangirVoluntaryist Před 5 lety +1

    second part almost perfectly matches the points ive made 1000+ times.. you need THREE things for quality: incentive(profit motive), competition, and liability (they need to be accountable for harm to you). government services rarely have a tiny bit of any of the three

  • @rameshacharya6941
    @rameshacharya6941 Před 4 lety

    Excellently illustrated the behavior of voters , the politicians and the bureaurocrats. This is exactly what happens in real scenario.

  • @i.l.5518
    @i.l.5518 Před 6 lety +26

    Can I click thumbs up 4000 more times? This guy is great!

  • @Goldsilver
    @Goldsilver Před 4 lety +28

    Brilliant.

    • @shawnmathew42
      @shawnmathew42 Před 3 lety

      I liked your video man. They are very good. I watched your video in my 11th grade of high school. I have learned alot from you man. I have showed it to my friends and teacher. I like especially episode 6&7. I have started to buy silver from your website.

  • @Josh420-13
    @Josh420-13 Před 5 lety +5

    U r forgetting that all these private businesses r monopolizing. So, when a sector is monopolized what is the incentive for a company to treat a customer. Hmm. Nothing. That’s happening all over in business. Who will ever save us from the private sector monopolies if we can’t vote on who runs the businesses. At least we can vote for politicians. And companies r only worried about their share holders. Most of us r not shareholders. That’s y in politics we r at least a shareholder. Also “welfare” we give to private companies is way more then whatever we give the poor citizens that actually need the money.

    • @eduardobranco8349
      @eduardobranco8349 Před 5 lety

      What monopolies are you talking about?
      Google is basically a monopoly on the internet search. Is that bad? They provide amazing service so I don't think it's a bad monopoly. Apple has a huge cut in the smartphone industry, but they're also a great company with great products. They deserve to be a monopoly. Monopoly in itself is not a problem if the monopoly was created because the business is great. Bad monopolies are created when the government creates laws that make it difficult for other companies to compete with established companies. But the government has tons of monopolies for itself. It's a monopoly of laws, force, public transportation, and many others.

  • @ConservativeVoicesUniversity

    Have a wonderful weekend... feeding the algorithms

  • @YOSUP315
    @YOSUP315 Před 5 lety +26

    30:20 3 days to get Tide??? But I'm hungry now!

  • @Meowskeed
    @Meowskeed Před 5 lety +6

    This guy is so clear and articulate, even someone with no prior knowledge on public choice theory could follow along and understand this. Great video!

    • @douglascain6404
      @douglascain6404 Před 5 lety +2

      He is an excellent speaker, no mispronouncing of words, good grammar and coherent complete sentences which makes for a smooth informative delivery.

  • @jansegal6687
    @jansegal6687 Před 3 lety +1

    A worthy successor of Milton Friedman, I enjoy watching

  • @bicyclist2
    @bicyclist2 Před 4 lety +1

    Millions need to see this. Thanks.

  • @iandick1364
    @iandick1364 Před 5 lety +8

    This is the kind of video that should be shown in highschool government class.

    • @SPQR7117
      @SPQR7117 Před 5 lety +1

      Sadly, that is _precisely_ why it will not be part of any public high school curriculum...

  • @user-og1fj8yo5x
    @user-og1fj8yo5x Před 6 lety +28

    Oh shit, this is an awesome channel, how did I not found it earlier!

  • @ichigokurosaki7762
    @ichigokurosaki7762 Před 3 lety +2

    Well that was the most educational rant I have ever watched

    • @LearnLiberty
      @LearnLiberty  Před 3 lety +1

      We strive to always educate on our rants

  • @ultraviolet.catastrophe
    @ultraviolet.catastrophe Před 3 lety +1

    This is one of the most informative videos on CZcams about government. Most governments in the world are inefficient. I've always sought to understand that phenomenon. This is a great start. Next up, what can be done.

    • @Demopans5990
      @Demopans5990 Před 2 lety

      Now the big question is, are monopolies and cartels also inefficient?

  • @kekero540
    @kekero540 Před 6 lety +9

    I just listened to guy explain government monopoly by venting about infuriating government websites.
    Pretty good.

    • @superchuck3259
      @superchuck3259 Před 5 lety +1

      Did you try the Affordable Care Act website. Gosh it stunk!

    • @sarahcollins190
      @sarahcollins190 Před 4 lety

      And is corporate monopoly any better...they just shaft you with a smile so you don't realise you have been shafted. At least with government you actually know it.

    • @sujimayne
      @sujimayne Před 4 lety +1

      @@sarahcollins190 Monopolies are created by governments. In a free market a state of monopoly is a temporary and transitional state of the market where competition is not deemed (urgently) necessary by demand, by consumers.

    • @arai6147
      @arai6147 Před 4 lety +1

      Man i had the same issues on indian government sites and the bank websites lol horrible template and design, wastes more time than it saves. Also the support is absolutely of no use coz they are as confused as i am

  • @maxarmstrong885
    @maxarmstrong885 Před 3 lety +3

    I very rarely comment on videos. But this, and others presented by Antony are very very good. Many thanks for the time invested in making these

  • @georgeanderson3821
    @georgeanderson3821 Před 2 lety +1

    Well done! An additional minor point. Bureaucracies are driven by self interest. Therefore it is in their best interest to make every function as complex as possible. Proactive intrusion.

  • @user-pj5oi7nk1e
    @user-pj5oi7nk1e Před 2 lety +2

    One of the underrated lectures on CZcams l, better than many MIT OCW videos!! You sir eloquently spoken genius. Please run for government

    • @YashArya01
      @YashArya01 Před rokem

      The whole point of this video is that him running got Government won't change anything unless the basic attitude of people changes and unless they understand basic economics.

  • @adamkallaev3573
    @adamkallaev3573 Před 4 lety +6

    32:28 If only the government would...
    leave me alone

  • @machetedonttweet1343
    @machetedonttweet1343 Před 4 lety +5

    This made me check my driver license expiration date, it's in 5 months, I'm doomed.

  • @kwstas2048
    @kwstas2048 Před 2 lety +1

    The most eye opening lecture about politics. Big respect to the creator's and the viewer's

  • @luxyoshi9876
    @luxyoshi9876 Před 3 lety +1

    BEAUTIFUL LECTURE I LOVE YOU I LOVE THIS MY BRAIN FEELS NURISHED

  • @pelicanbird901
    @pelicanbird901 Před 4 lety +5

    😂😂 I love this guy! This is the second video I’ve seen by him and I love his candor, his simple explanations. I wish you were my college professor. Great content too! I 100% agree!!👏👏👏

  • @UnluckyFatGuy
    @UnluckyFatGuy Před 4 lety +12

    Alexa, please file this under, "Things school should have taught me."

  • @MatthewHolevinski
    @MatthewHolevinski Před 4 lety +1

    26:09 ... I don't know what that means ... absolutely perfect delivery, spot on, and priceless

  • @LeviWritesBooks
    @LeviWritesBooks Před 5 lety +2

    This is a salient, enlightening lecture. Thank you!

  • @ArnVah12
    @ArnVah12 Před 5 lety +27

    I think this entire video happened because he was fed up with the PennDOT ahahah

  • @Jake-zn1qr
    @Jake-zn1qr Před 3 lety +3

    He does a good job exploring the problems with the government. Now he should do the private sector next!
    After all, people in the private sector are not motivated by your best interests either. They are motivated by parting as many people from as much money as they can at as little cost to themselves as possible. Sometimes, by happy coincidence, this motivation leads them to provide you with great products and services. In many other cases businesses do whatever they can to fool people into buying cheap garbage so they can make off with your money.
    In addition, they do all kinds of awful things in the back-end because as long as the present a nice product in the front people will buy it without ever thinking about where it came from. Pollution, exploited workers, unsanitary and unhealthy foods, and defective or unsafe products are the result of this.
    If a business could establish a monopoly and overcharge for whatever product, or fix prices to their benefit, or heavily restrict the supply of something in order to drive up prices artificially, they absolutely would. The government is actually sometimes the only thing that ensures they continue to compete with one another instead of just merging and cornering the market. Plus, if it benefits them to make something confusing and labyrinthine instead of simple and easy, they will. I notice he mentioned the confusing DMV website, but never talked about dealing with an insurance company when they need to pay out, or reading an end-user agreement, or trying to cancel a subscription to something.
    Neither the government nor the private sector are free of issues. We should employ each of them in the areas where they are best suited.

    • @gabrielluzia2745
      @gabrielluzia2745 Před 2 lety

      If the market was free, having a natural monopoly would be real difficult, most of the monopoly only happen with the help of govt, when they rise the entry barriers for something, they are trying make monopolies with their friends on the private sector. The only one who can maintain or create a bad monopoly is the govt. A natural monopoly isn't always bad, and if became bad, the market correct itself with time

  • @garretrobinson3668
    @garretrobinson3668 Před 2 lety +1

    This is one of the greatest lectures I’ve ever heard

  • @mrceresa1
    @mrceresa1 Před 4 lety +1

    What an amazing presentation! You are appreciated.

  • @cassostrophic7380
    @cassostrophic7380 Před 5 lety +4

    This is amazing information . Well done lecture I’m entertained and learning .. you should be way more popular

  • @MacroAggressor
    @MacroAggressor Před 5 lety +6

    Phenomenal lecture. Thank you Professor Davies, keep 'em coming!

  • @bg048
    @bg048 Před 3 lety +1

    Big help for my microeconomics class! Thanks!

  • @matth6762
    @matth6762 Před 5 lety

    Im from washington pa. Cool to see a local giving a talk like this.

  • @Zgf72
    @Zgf72 Před 4 lety +3

    I can’t stress enough how much I love this video.

  • @TheSuburban15
    @TheSuburban15 Před 5 lety +3

    If you buy a CD from amazon, you can download the album in MP3 format right after you finalize the purchase.

    • @gabriellucena6583
      @gabriellucena6583 Před 3 lety

      @kcotte59 What's even worse? They're not the ones selling it either so they screw up everyone in the area. Then they say stupid things like "buyback" they didn't sell a thing.

  • @dlane3206
    @dlane3206 Před 2 lety +1

    This guy is so spot on. I do volunteer water quality monitoring for the State and their website is so terrible.

  • @Immortal306
    @Immortal306 Před 5 lety

    He did a great job of pointing out many issues with governments.
    The issue now is finding solutions to those that don't lead to even worse outcomes.
    For example, fixing the issue with government bureaucracy by privatization tends to not work. Since as bad as government bureaucracies are, they tend to be better than privately owned monoplies, which have the same reasons for not caring about providing the best service, but would also have reasons to lower the quality of service even further if it reduces costs (and so increases their personal profits) . EDIT: or just increase cost to consumer without providing anything as they have no competition.

  • @johnjacobjinglehimerschmid3555

    Man if this isn't a speech in favor of term limits I don't know what is.
    This needs to be shown to every graduating HS senior in the United States, and it needs a comprehension test afterwards. So many kids these days are nothing but low knowledge participation trophy winners.

  • @gordonokumu1337
    @gordonokumu1337 Před 5 lety +6

    wow wow wow! Good job sir! This is the first CZcams lecture that I have stayed and watch entirely without a pose! You are a great lecturer!

  • @joeatheist3545
    @joeatheist3545 Před 4 lety +1

    Excellent video and all of your videos should be shown in every school starting in middle school.

  • @davidpatrick1813
    @davidpatrick1813 Před 4 lety

    I am stunned at the clarity and things helpful

  • @coltoncrain5375
    @coltoncrain5375 Před 5 lety +13

    Hahaha, i see that EVERYONE gets irritated with the DMV.

    • @jrstf
      @jrstf Před 5 lety

      This time around I simply ignored them. Why did the price go up so much in Pennsylvania? I hope my expired card doesn't bite me, I have no intention of renewing.

    • @arai6147
      @arai6147 Před 4 lety

      kcotte59 lmao

  • @roberthaley9697
    @roberthaley9697 Před 6 lety +6

    This demonstration radically understates the inefficiency and corruption inherent in the political process.

    • @thetayterminator1436
      @thetayterminator1436 Před 5 lety +1

      I started laughing so hard when he said "and the representatives voting on behalf of the people" that's not how you pronounce Lobbyists!

  • @dougg1075
    @dougg1075 Před 4 lety +1

    I was pulled out of a pandemic slumber by the loudness of the truth . This is great!

  • @nicholasnarcowich9163
    @nicholasnarcowich9163 Před 4 lety +1

    I think this was the most wonderful presentation of Government v.s. private sector that I have ever seen. Forwarding :-) , & thank you so very much, & Yes, I just subscribed.

  • @techguy651
    @techguy651 Před 3 lety +4

    My only problem with this video is that he didn’t keep going to explain how market competition drives the incentives in the charity industry and how that’s superior than the motivation for the government. One will feed and clothe homeless people at a few dollars per person and the other will bleach their food.

  • @avowliberty2250
    @avowliberty2250 Před 6 lety +11

    _Democracy_ - Two wolves and a sheep voting on what they are going to have for dinner.
    _Constitutional Republic_ - Two wolves and a sheep voting on what they are going to have for dinner, but they have to change the "menu" first.

    • @paradox5939
      @paradox5939 Před 6 lety

      Free Your Mind a republic is a well armed sheep contesting the vote

  • @Mechaneer
    @Mechaneer Před 4 lety +1

    Fantastic explanation of the benefits of a limited government.

  • @biglee3816
    @biglee3816 Před 3 lety +1

    I always asked my myself "Why ask me to fill out any form". They should know everything about me. I had to fill out an application for my new passport. All of the questions in the passport application is the same as my citizenship application, my driver license application and every other government applications that I've filled in my life. The government charge money to file information they already have.

  • @CritterCrew1
    @CritterCrew1 Před 6 lety +4

    I love this guys videos.

  • @robertj.simpson354
    @robertj.simpson354 Před 6 lety +3

    Davies is the best, full stop.

  • @MegzeeR
    @MegzeeR Před 4 lety

    This should be a required lecture for every civics class in every US high school.

  • @imperialhistati2348
    @imperialhistati2348 Před 2 lety +1

    One of the best lectures I’ve seen in my life…

  • @uilium
    @uilium Před 5 lety +6

    How can anyone argue with this approach?
    Who else teaches this apparent wisdom?

  • @redpilled3569
    @redpilled3569 Před 6 lety +6

    This is a very good video to bad most people won't take it seriously.

    • @eingew
      @eingew Před 5 lety

      He only counts known problems. He doesn't explain how a solution could work. He kinda implies setting up government as a business would be smart. Which is running in opposition to how laws work and have to work in the first place. You cannot have competition on enforcing property rights, because then you wouldn't have any property rights at all.

  • @danieljarrup6500
    @danieljarrup6500 Před 4 lety +1

    What a great presentation on the topic. Amazing what you can learn from people who want to teach.

  • @404errorpagenotfound.6
    @404errorpagenotfound.6 Před 2 lety +1

    I got a nervous rash listening to the licence renewal story, it reminded me of all the times I lost half a day trying to deal with local government about some trivial matter I had no choice to engage in.