Toxic Public Goods

Abstract

Everybody loves public goods. After all, they are a perpetual utility machine. Obviously, we want as many of them as possible. But what if the consumption of a public good actually decreases net social welfare? I refer to this kind of public good as a public good. I discuss three kinds of potential toxic public goods: trolling, pornography, and ideology. And I reflect on how we might make the production of toxic public goods more efficient.