[EM] remember Toby Nixon? FS

[Kevin Venzke]

Hi Forest,

--- En date de : Mer 25.5.11, fsimmons at pcc.edu <fsimmons at pcc.edu> a écrit :
> The main problem is determining (through the disinformation
> noise) who the front runners really are. 
> Suppose the zero-information front runners to be candidates
> A and B, but that the media created front 
> runners are C and D.  If everybody votes for one of
> these two falsely advertised front runners, then they 
> become the front runners, but only through self fulfilling
> prophecy.

The difference between Approval and Plurality here is that in Plurality
when the frontrunners are A and B, generally only A and B can win. Under
Approval it is not guaranteed that the winner will be one of these
candidates, as long as C or D haven't dropped out of the race.
If the perceived frontrunners are actually the worst candidates, any
better candidates should receive a vast number of votes.

If C or D are clones of A/B then I think they probably would drop out
of the race. But if we are simply electing the wrong clone, that doesn't
seem like an enormous problem.

Kevin