[r00fus]

btw "bad regulation" is usually due to regulatory capture [1] whether in legislation (ie, regulation without teeth, designed to fail) or in practice (ie, revolving door/corruption).

Which usually points back to the companies/industries being regulated.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture

[scoofy]

Again, this can be true, but regulatory capture is a problem of democracy, not of regulation powers themselves.

[r00fus]

The problem with democracy and regulations both come down to essentially sovereign financial powers (wealthy/corporate) that have interests that don't align with the people or the state that is supposed to represent the people.

These corporations control us if we don't control them.

[scoofy]

The problem with democracy is the dunning-kruger effect more than the principle-agent problem. People think highly-complex problems are obvious and easy. They care more about big sweeping theory than they do about local technocracy.

The idea that anti-intellectualism even exists is testament to this.

[r00fus]

Gonna say something that would likely be downvoted but a functioning society does not need democracy. A governing body needs legitimacy because it's power springs from the people, but democracy and voting are not necessarily requisite.

e.g. China/CCP (which isn't really communism, but definitely not democratic).

[mellavora]

The advantage of a democracy is that it gives society a way to say "we made a bad choice". Individuals almost never can do this.

But you are right, a benevolent, enlightened dictatorship is probably the best form of government. Only two problems:

- finding a benevolent enlightened dictator

- keeping them benevolent and enlightened

[brutusborn]

How is regulatory capture a problem of democracy? Surely you only need a regulator and a party to capture them?

For example, what's stopping a company in China lobbying a minister for regulations that harm their competitors? The Minister may not have been elected through democratic means, but regulatory capture can still occur.

[scoofy]

I didn't mean exclusively. I meant it's an existing problem, the distance between the regulator and the authority, which in democracy is quite distant, but in other form of government can also be quite distant.

[brutusborn]

I think we're getting closer but I still don't understand. What do you mean by "the authority"?

[scoofy]

This is not a game for me

[brutusborn]

?