Let's Talk About "Nudge"

"Nudge" is a book written by Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler.

From the Publisher
Every day, we make decisions on topics ranging from personal investments to schools for our children to the meals we eat to the causes we champion. Unfortunately, we often choose poorly. The reason, the authors explain, is that, being human, we all are susceptible to various biases that can lead us to blunder. Our mistakes make us poorer and less healthy; we often make bad decisions involving education, personal finance, health care, mortgages and credit cards, the family, and even the planet itself.

Thaler and Sunstein invite the listener to enter an alternative world, one that takes our humanness as a given. They show that by knowing how people think, we can design choice environments that make it easier for people to choose what is best for themselves, their families, and their society. Using colorful examples from the most important aspects of life, Thaler and Sunstein demonstrate how thoughtful "choice architecture" can be established to nudge us in beneficial directions without restricting freedom of choice. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?r=1&ISBN=9780300122237&ourl=Nudge%2FRichard%2DH%2DThaler/

Just this past Saturday, President Obama announced that he will now make it easier for Americans to save by implementing 'just a few changes.' President Obama must really pay attention to the ideas of his advisors--Sunstein, the regulatory czar, and Thaler, an economic advisor because this new policy comes right out of the pages of their book.

I would love to have someone explain to me how exactly the government can "design choice environments" by doing a little "choice architecture" and STILL claim they are not restricting freedom of choice??
You cannot claim you are allowing free will when you provide all of the 'acceptable' answers to the problem.

This is not the end of their vision though, you can be sure of that. After the government provides us the "choice" of healthcare, they will provide us the "choice" of what things we are allowed to eat in order to keep costs down. It's only the beginning. This is a slippery slope folks.

We DO have a choice to make and we better make it fast!