I've been thinking a lot lately about a class of actions that have the opposite effect in the long term than their short term one. I am sure they have a name, and that I am not the only person to have thought about these. They are a pretty simple class, however when people encounter them in real life it almost always mystifies them. They have important implications for many political actions which are aimed only at the short term, and have use for making ordinary day-to-day life run more smoothly too.
Here are some simple examples (some of which I've mentioned here before):
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Here are some simple examples (some of which I've mentioned here before):
( Read more... )