Les Jones: Now There's a Stigma I'm Familiar With

September 28, 2005

Economics > Now There's a Stigma I'm Familiar With

Bryan Kaplan writes about economics and idiot's stigma:

If most people buy insurance and you don't and something bad happens to you, you get a double whammy - the direct loss plus the idiot's stigma. If most people don't buy insurance and you don't and something bad happens to you, you are only out the money. If most people buy it, you want it too; if most people don't, you probably don't want it either.
By way of analogy, consider these two scenarios:

1. You lose $1000 in some unforeseen way.
2. You lose $1000 in a way your spouse specifically warned you might happen.

It seems to me that #2 is MUCH worse for most people than #1. $1000 is no big deal; but $1000 plus the scorn of your spouse is a very big deal. Now think how much worse it would be if everyone took your spouse's side against you. Ouch.

Posted by lesjones | TrackBack

Comments

Every day, I am stigmatized as an idiot by my wife.

It usually has something to do with something my mother said or did though, not money. I'd rather it was money, at least I would have more control over that.

Posted by: countertop at September 28, 2005

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