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Homework answers / question archive / The tragedy of the commons: a) describes the gradual shift from individual to communal grazing rights
The tragedy of the commons:
a) describes the gradual shift from individual to communal grazing rights.
b) can be successfully solved by allowing individuals to follow their self-interest, without a need for government intervention.
c) followed from excessive government interference in the maintenance of the commons.
d) occurred because no one person owned the commons, so no one had the incentive to take care of it.
The tragedy of the commons d) occurred because no one person owned the commons, so no one had the incentive to take care of it.
The tragedy of the commons is an exception to Adam Smith's law of rational self-interest. The tragedy of the commons occurs when people acting in their own self-interest deplete a shared resource. An example might be if cows were allowed to over-graze a public field, or over-fishing of the oceans so that not enough fish are left to maintain the population of fish.