When I read that political philosophers vote less often than other philosophers (and political scientists) I was reminded of the book Can a Robot be Human?.
This book touches on the logic behind voting, and comes to the conclusion that – for an individual – it is pointless because no election has ever been decided on one person’s vote. Of course, this is negated if you announce this to the world or persuade others not to vote too.
My first thought was that political scientists believe in the ideal democracy and therefore vote; political philosophers realise the truth, so don’t waste their time. Then again, rational choice theory says that voter turnout should be zero!
Also from The Splintered Mind: Ethics books are more widely stolen from libraries than other philosophy books.
via Mind Hacks