cqvip:This article challenges the famous argument of Lisa Kallet that the Athenian people did not understand public finance.It argues that the dēmos(“people”)had the necessary general knowledge and the necessary understanding of the state’s budget to make independent financial choices.Their democratic council and politicians kept them well informed on the overall fiscal position of Athens.By adjudicating public debates about the state’s budget they learnt a great deal about public finance.Over time the votes that they cast in such debates came to reflect their own priorities for their state.Consequently the sums that Athenian democracy spent on different activities reflected the preferences of,not politicians,as Kallet argued,but the dēmos themselves.
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