Toward Positive Public Choice Theory

The purpose of this article is to argue the nature of a theory of public choice which can, should be, and has been partly developed. By positive I mean objective and nonnormative, that is, without implicit or explicit normative premises, and which thereby attempts only to explain and/or describe, not to evaluate. In support of this objective the article argues the following: (1) There is a difference between saying (a) there is a tendency toward more (less) production than otherwise would be the case, and (b) there is over(under)production. (2) There is a difference between saying (a) myths and symbols are more important than, or equal in importance to, actual social reality because they influence the basis on which people make decisions, and (b) certain myths and symbols are necessary for the proper or correct functioning of society. (3) There is a difference between saying (a) what is the case, (b) what ought to be the case, and (c) what is necessary or instrumentally use? ful given what ought to be the case. In each instance, to go from the (a) statement to the (b) statement (and in the case of (3) to the (c) statement as well) one must have some normative basis or premise on which to predicate the additional normative holding. To illustrate the type of public choice theory which I propose to be both desirable and feasible, I shall use some of the analysis in James M. Buchanan and Richard E. Wagner's Democracy in Deficit. This vir? tuoso effort argues, among other things, that bloated government spending, continued and increasing budget deficits and national debts, apparent permanent inflation, and high unemployment are undesir? able and, further, may be related to certain understandings of how democratic, political and psychological processes work in conjunction with Keynesian ideas to abort desired constitutional restraints on poli? tics. In the course of developing their argument or diagnosis, Bu? chanan and Wagner (BW) utilize public choice theory. Apropos their overall argument, I would like the following points clearly under? stood. First, I believe that theirs is a distinctive normative argument utilizing public choice theory, which is to say that theirs is a norma

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