Dani Rodrick — Ideas over Interests

The most widely held theory of politics is also the simplest: the powerful get what they want. Financial regulation is driven by the interests of banks, health policy by the interests of insurance companies, and tax policy by the interests of the rich. Those who can influence government the most – through their control of resources, information, access, or sheer threat of violence – eventually get their way....

Yet this explanation is far from complete, and often misleading. Interests are not fixed or predetermined. They are themselves shaped by ideas – beliefs about who we are, what we are trying to achieve, and how the world works. Our perceptions of self-interest are always filtered through the lens of ideas.

Read the rest at Project Syndicate
Ideas over Interests

by Dani Rodrick | Professor, Harvard University Kennedy School of Government

There may be trouble with this like due to something amiss at Project Syndicate. I got in initially but am having difficulty now. UPDATE: Link working again now.