Futarchy Explained

Futarchy is a form of government proposed by economist Robin Hanson, in which elected officials define measures of national wellbeing, and prediction markets are used to determine which policies will have the most positive effect.[1]

It was named by The New York Times as a buzzword of 2008.[2] The idea of futarchy was later introduced in the context of blockchains and the DAO bringing it closer to an actual implementation.[3]

Criticisms

Economist Tyler Cowen said

I would bet against the future of futarchy, or its likelihood of succeeding were it in place. Robin says "vote on values, bet on beliefs", but I don't think values and beliefs can be so easily separated.[4]

References

  1. Book: Hanson, Robin . Robin Hanson . Shall we vote on values, but bet on beliefs? . 10.1.1.71.8309 . 2007 .
  2. News: Leibovich . Mark . Barrett . Grant . The Buzzwords of 2008 . Week in Review . . 2010-07-23 . 2008-12-21.
  3. News: Rennie . Ellie . Potts . Jason . The DAO: a radical experiment that could be the future of decentralised governance . 26 December 2020 . The Conversation . en.
  4. Web site: Cowen . Tyler . Tyler Cowen . Where do I disagree with Robin Hanson? . Marginal Revolution . 2007-08-04 . 2010-07-23.

External links