Superstitious Policies

It's difficult to interpret the strategy or purpose of recycling. It sounds great because we've all been subjected to excellent marketing and compliance initiatives, but recycling solves no pressing issue or long-term problem and costs far more than producing new materials.

Perhaps its supporters think it will be profitable one day, so we should work at incremental economic efficiencies? Or maybe it's a practice of good stewardship despite the costs? Maybe we do it to feel good through a ritual of inclusive Kafkaesque social activity? Maybe we're all deluded about what we think we're contributing and should educate ourselves about reality?

We have no public statement of intent, and accordingly no theory and related data to assess, leaving us only to speculate and wonder about another policy imposed for mysterious reasons that cannot be evaluated.

Public policy and laws should state a theory and a proposed implementation of that theory. If the theory is later found to be wrong-headed, it can be quickly repealed instead of treating it as a sacrosanct zombie to keep alive out of habit. If the theory is found to be correct, we might find a better implementation to improve the current system.

With invisible and magical policies kept away from inspection, we are left to guess at the reasons for their origins.

We could form falsifiable theories instead of following what a politician or mass of idiots think is a good idea. Perhaps we could even form policies based on ideas from someone knowledgeable about the topic.