The Game of Consequences

Unintended consequences are one of my favorite topics. I only wish politicians around the world felt the same. Most of them barely consider the immediate effects of their policies, let alone the second-order ones. They settle on a good‑sounding meme their audience likes and run with it. Years or decades later the consequences catch up but nobody takes the responsibility, even if it’s the same people in power. Governance is not exactly solved, but many recurring policy questions are no longer mysterious. We have decades of evidence from different countries, cities, and political systems. Yet we keep making the same mistakes. Our world isn’t static. Policies change incentives. People adapt. Rent control is probably the dumbest one. Economists overwhelmingly agree that it reduces the supply and quality of rental housing over time, but voters continue to support it. San Francisco expanded rent control in 1994 to protect tenants from rising rents and displacement. Affected landlords…