state politics: idaho

Prisoner’s Dilemma, Idaho Style

By Sharon Fisher, 3-24-08

In classic game theory, there is an exercise known as “Prisoner’s Dilemma,” where two players have to decide whether to cooperate or betray their opponent, based on a series of rewards or punishments built into the game. Typically, in a single game, various studies have concluded that betrayal works better.

What becomes more interesting is “iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma,” where there is a whole series of such games, along with the memory of how one’s opponent behaved in previous games. In those games, it can work out better to cooperate, or, at least, to only betray one’s opponent when the opponent betrays first.

Last week, a Harvard University study on iterated prisoner’s dilemma included a third variation: the addition of costly or spiteful punishment, where one opponent could punish the other in return for paying a fine itself of one-fourth of the punishment. The result, according to David Rand, the biology graduate student at Harvard who designed the experiment, is that “people who punished in response to defection did very badly, and people who did not punish did very well.”

Apparently, the Idaho Legislature doesn’t read Harvard studies.

For a number of days now, the two houses of the body, as well one of their respective committees, have been engaged a – well, we’ll call it a “spitting contest.” While members all claim they’re doing their best to end the session – which had originally been slated to end last Friday.—several major issues remain, particularly the budget for the Idaho Transportation Department.

Yet the House, the Senate, and their respective transportation committees are running into a conflict, particularly over House Concurrent Resolution 50, which calls for spending more than a half-million dollars on an independent evaluation of ITD. The House doesn’t want to pass the ITD budget – including the bills on spending $134 million on GARVEE bonds for new construction – until the Senate passes HCR 50, and the Senate, refusing to be pushed, is dragging its feet. It didn’t even go into session on Friday, for no reason that is reflected in the Senate journal.

Perhaps in retaliation, the House is not going into session today, similarly for no reason documented in the journal.

This sort of thing doesn’t usually happen. Every day of extending the Legislative session costs at least $30,000, which is why the Legislature doesn’t even typically take holidays.

And while HCR 50 is slated for the 10th Order in the Senate, it was just announced that the Senate would not go into the 10th Order during this morning’s session, perhaps delaying passage even further.

According to Rand, an everyday application of his study is that, instead of threatening or insulting one’s opponent, one should just say they’re going to abandon a project and find someone else who will contribute.

Unfortunately, there’s not another, more cooperative, legislative body waiting in the wings.

Sharon Fisher is a candidate for the Idaho Legislature, District 21.

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