The Monkey Cage

I dare anyone to actually do a BB&B study. Perhaps call it some priming thing. “Variations in Citizen Perceptions of Economic Conditions When Primed by Ready Availability of Consumer Goods.” Yeah. That’s the ticket. (Sampling bias? We don’t need no stinking external validity.)

I think this is Bai’s lazy way of saying that academic political scientists only interact with real Americans when they go shopping for bath mats or blenders with their monthly 20%-off coupon from BB&B. Not that we’re doing research at BB&B.

I, of course, interact with real Americans at Wal-Mart. But I’m one of those weird capitalist political scientists instead of the socialist ones who pay more to feel better at themselves by shopping at Target and Whole Foods ;-)

When we’re not going to Bed, Bath, and Beyond, we cocoon ourselves in specially designed microfibers and plug the ports in our brain into STATA. The support staff brings food, which they serve to us in reconstituted form via a small straw. The interface allows for autonomic eating, thereby preventing us from actually interacting with another living being.

Those of us who have engaged with other people long enough to produce offspring will sometimes consult them about the meaning of strange terms like “bowling alley” and “Republican party.”

I’d have no problem with someone attacking me for focusing on public opinion and ignoring the real world of political deals, arm-twisting in Washington, etc.

But that too is absurd. Understanding of how public opinion “works” is just as key as understanding group decision making or how Congressional committee assignments get handed out.

Paul Gowder wrote: “I, of course, interact with real Americans at Wal-Mart. But I’m one of those weird capitalist political scientists instead of the socialist ones who pay more to feel better at themselves by shopping at Target and Whole Foods ;-)”

While I grant that I, too have scoffed at friends who but groceries at Whole Paycheck, I wonder why you spend money on things if not to “feel better.” I assume most non-poor people are spending a certain amount on the necessities they need to keep alive and safely housed, and the rest of their spending is directed to make themselves feel good, either immediately or by investing in future happiness. Am I wrong? What’s weird about shopping somewhere because you feel better about how the firm treats it’s workers? How is it different than buying a smaller house in a neighborhood you think is pretty vs. a bigger one in a neighborhood you don’t like, or buying a CD because you think the singer is hot even if somebody else is a better singer? If this type of behavior doesn’t seem rational to you, you may need a different model of rationality to use when analyzing people’s behavior.

I think psychologists call this “projection.”

I didn’t write that! Chris wrote that! I’m a commie!