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Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by khafra on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @08:44AM (#2811863)
Tea Party-leaning legislators have constituents who actually want them to shut down the Federal Government, so they have less to lose than those legislators beholden to sane voters.

The problem is, once your opponent in this game of chicken has visibly guzzled a fifth of bourbon and torn off his steering wheel, it's too late for you to do the same.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by ars on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @09:08AM (#2811934)
You are falling into the same trap. You see them wanting to shut down the goverment and decided they are insane.

They have perfectly sane reasons for wanting that - you just don't agree. And if you are unable to see that, then the fault lies with you, not with them.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by khafra on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @10:28AM (#2812264)
Whether they're sane by some objective standard is irrelevant to this understanding of the underlying game theory. If someone handcuffs himself to you on the edge of a cliff and starts dancing a jig, he has the upper hand in negotiations, for pretty much anything he wants to negotiate.
Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by ars on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @10:37AM (#2812306)
You are still stuck.

You think they are doing things just to annoy you, or for no reason at all.

They are choosing things because they think it's the best thing to do.

But you seem incapable of realizing that someone may actually have a different opinion about something. You seem to think that if they have a different opinion it must mean that they are not rational.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by albedoa on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @10:31AM (#2812277)
They have perfectly sane reasons for wanting that

Name one.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by jpadkins on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @12:43PM (#2812931)
To force the country to prioritize its spending and stop creating higher taxes on future generations. Deficit spending is taxation without representation, and should be eliminated.

Both parties are guilty of deficit spending (republicans more so) and new representatives were elected in 2010 to reduce spending.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by ars on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @10:40AM (#2812317)
Why are you asking me? Go ask them.

And whatever answer they give you, if you think that it's not a sane reason then the problem lies with you, not with them.

It's hard, but eventually you will learn to accept that other people have different opinions about things - even things that seem totally obvious to you.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by albedoa on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @10:52AM (#2812373)
I am asking you because you made the assertion.

Now you're asking me to go prove your assertions for you. I wasn't the one who made the claim.

It's hard, but eventually you will learn to accept that other people have different opinions about things - even things that seem totally obvious to you.

This is unnecessary. I do accept that other people have different opinions. What I don't accept is that they are inherently sane, which is the assertion you made. I simply asked you to support the claim that there are sane reasons with an example of such a reason.

Re:Game Theory Take On - Washington’s Rogue Elephants by ars on Wednesday July 27, 2011 @11:31AM (#2812550)
> I do accept that other people have different opinions.

You say that and yet you can't think of even a single sane reason to want to shut down the government?