MIKE OSSIPOFF wrote: > > Your standard, you once said, is to elect the candidate most likely > to be the absolute best. But most would probably agree that there's > no such thing as the best candidate, in an absolute sense. Some > candidates are best for some people, other candidates are best for > other people. Looking for the candidate most likely to be the > absolute best, you're chasing an apparition.
You haven't actually brought out an argument in favour of your position. The fact that there exist candidates that are best for some people isn't in dispute and doesn't address the issue. Imagine an island where two men have fallen into a dispute. Each man's position is better for him, in that it is in his narrowly defined self-interest. Is it possible to say that one position is right? It's pretty hard to maintain that there is no dispute they could have where one position is in the right. For example, if one man decided he should be allowed to eat the other man, not because of starvation, but just taste. I think it would be hard to argue that both positions are best for the individual, and that's all that can be said. If each wanted to be Island President, we would have to conclude that there is an absolute best choice. But if you acknowledge an absolute best option in this case, then presumably you believe there can be best candidates. You could say that this is a rare occurrence. But on what grounds? I think you'll find that an even more precarious position to take. The second problem with your position is that all our arguments are predicated on there being a right answer. I mean, plurality is best for the current government. Maybe it isn't best for anyone else, although that seems implausible. But unless we are willing to say that one side *should* prevail, we can't make any recommendations. In fact, for those cases where there is no absolute best candidate, I don't see how it can matter who wins. Presumably different candidates are better for different people, but there is no candidate who we can say *should* win. If there were, he or she would be the absolute best choice. --- Blake Cretney
