1365: Antony Davies – Unintended Consequences

W1365: Antony Davies - Unintended Consequences
In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan
In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×4020) 214KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×2010) 124KB
In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. HarriganDownload Print Quality (7680×7680) 333KB  |  Normal Quality (3840×3840) 308KB

In Hanoi during the French colonial period there was a problem with too many rats. The French authorities offered a bounty for every rat killed but required only that people bring the rats’ tails as evidence. Hanoi was soon overrun by tailless rats. The people were simply catching the rats, cutting off their tails, and releasing them. Why? So those rats could procreate, creating more rats and more bounties. In the end, Hanoi had more rats after the bounty than before. Sometimes there are perverse outcomes and unintended consequences of a government policy. —Antony Davies, James R. Harrigan

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