Society
Exploring "Why" questions about Society
481 articles
Why is China still a developing country despite it’s massive economy?
Because most of its citizens are still poor, subsistence farmers or low skilled factory workers, etc. The economy is massive but their population is ALSO massive. Their per capita GDP is about 1/7 tha
Why can’t I do my taxes like I am a business?
The standard deduction, personal exemptions, and progressive tax brackets should accomplish the same goal, without the book keeping effort. That is, you don't pay federal income taxes until you are ma
why are some banks able to give different rates on things, ie. a higher yield percentage on savings accounts, as opposed to others?
Like any business, it's competition. There are certainly costs involved with running 1000's of branches that online banks don't have to deal with, so they do have some efficiencies they can pass along
Why can’t governments print “temporary” money to cover important expenses?
They do, and it causes inflation because the money doesn't have any material value behind it. Money is just something we use to represent value. Without creating the value, the printed money isn't any
Why does “inflation” happen, and why can’t we set up policies to encourage deinflation instead?
the opposite of inflation is called deflation. Deflation is kinda dangerous for an economy, as people will save up money instead of spending it. Why should you buy a TV for 1000$ today when you can ge
Why don’t highway police ticket left-lane driving more often to raise revenues? Also, if followed better, would traffic move better?
Harder to prove in court. It's much easier to point a radar gun at a car and measure it's speed. You were going 125 in a 100 zone.
Why is ignorance of the law not an excuse if you have to go to school for years just to understand the law?
If ignorance of the law was a defense, it would mean that a prosecutor would not only have to prove a criminal violation but *also* prove the suspect knew it was a criminal violation. Everyone should
Why are all adverts on porn sites of such poor quality? [NSFW]
Sometimes advertisers purposely make their ads look like they're written by non-english speakers. I get spam on a daily basis with people pretending to be "a young russian lady living in the boonies o
Why do we use fresh water for our sewage?
It's easier and cheaper to have a single delivery system to all buildings than it is to develop and install a second identical system for non-potable water delivery. You're also avoiding the inevitabl
Why to the license plates in Washington DC say “Taxation without Representation?”
because DC does not get to elect a congressman, an ironic juxtaposition to the fighters of the revolutionary war whose battle cry against England was " No Taxation without Representation."