The "problem" with circularity (was Re: Reply to Blake Cretney)

[Markus Schulze]

Dear Steve,

you wrote (24 Feb 1999):
> JITW guarantees that no candidate can be
> made into a spoiler against his/her will.

The Condorcet Paradox says that there are situations in
which _independently on who is elected_ there is always
a spoiler. These are the so-called "cyclic" situations.

JITW cannot get rid of this problem.

Example:

   40 voters prefer A > B > C.
   35 voters prefer B > C > A.
   25 voters prefer C > A > B.
   Candidate A prefers candidate B to candidate C.
   Candidate B prefers candidate C to candidate A.
   Candidate C prefers candidate A to candidate B.

Independently on who is elected, there is always
a spoiler. JITW cannot guarantee that no candidate
can be made into a spoiler against his will.

Markus Schulze