Are Two Knaves Better Than One? Hume, Buchanan, and Musgrave on Economics and Government
比较休谟、布坎南和马斯格雷夫对市场与政府中自利动机的不同假设，发现休谟基于最坏情况提出的次优方案可能因相互制衡而成为最佳选择。
It is commonplace to view market agents as self-interested knaves, while government agents are either as knaves or public-spirited angels. What are the consequences of these different motivational assumptions in modeling governmental and market behavior? We compare David Hume, James M. Buchanan, and Richard Musgrave. We claim that Hume, the only one thinking consistently in terms of the worst-case, offers a second best solution for both the government and the economy, which may turn out to be the best possible solution given human nature. Because of the reciprocal check, two knaves are better than one. More is preferred to less even with vices…