[EM] Equal vote v. equal utility

[Anthony Simmons]

>> From: DEMOREP1 at aol.com
>> Subject: [EM] Re: democratic aggregation of utility

As Forest has discussed just recently, equal vote does not
imply equal utility.  This presents us with the problem of
deciding whether we want to promote maximum total utility,
equal utility, or something else, all the while ensuring
equal vote.  Assuming that utility can be measured, which I
am coming to doubt.  Come to think of it, I have some doubts
about measuring equal vote as well.

>> Mr. A. Simmons wrote-

>> I wonder if it's really possible to add utilities
>> meaningfully.  The example you give, of a living wage,
>> doesn't seem to be amenable to such a thing.  What would we
>> actually measure in order to assign real numbers to physical
>> examples?  Stick electrodes in people's brains?  Personally,
>> I think the real-space model that is so ubiquitous in the
>> social sciences (e.g. factor analysis) is more of a metaphor.
>>
>> ----
>> D- For newer folks, I again have to mention that each
>> elector is supposed to have an equal vote.

>> For legislative body elections, most election reform folks
>> want some sort of proportional representation method (to
>> show that such legislative body is supposed to be a
>> substitute of a meeting of ALL such electors -- in which
>> each elector would have 1 vote on each bill in the body --
>> - regardless of his/her intensity about any particular
>> bill).

>> For executive and judicial office elections the same
>> principle applies -- an *equal* vote per elector ---
>> regardless of his/her intensity about any particular
>> candidate.