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Is Democracy Like Sex?
Glenn Harlan Reynolds University of Tennessee College of Law Vanderbilt Law Review, Vol. 48, 1995 Abstract: Sex is messy and expensive, yet it persists. Evolutionary biologists have spent years wondering why, and many have concluded that one reason for the persistence of sexual reproduction is the superior resistance to parasites that it confers, by constantly reshuffling the target species' genes and characteristics. Democracy, too, seems messy and expensive, yet it has persisted in the United States for over 200 years. Drawing on the work of Mancur Olson, this Essay suggests that democracy plays a similar anti-parasitic role, by making it harder for government insiders and special interest groups to achieve full symbiosis.
Keywords: democracy, sex, federalism, parasites, constitution Accepted Paper SeriesDate posted: February 12, 2007 ; Last revised: February 12, 2007Suggested CitationContact Information
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