Alienation and the Median-Voter Rule. Consider the example of the ice cream vendors on the beach. Suppose people are unwilling to walk more than 1/4 mile for an ice cream cone. As a starting point,...

Alienation and the Median-Voter Rule. Consider the example of the ice cream vendors on the beach. Suppose people are unwilling to walk more than 1/4 mile for an ice cream cone. As a starting point, suppose both sellers locate at the median location, the 1/2 mile mark.

a.Fill in the blanks in the following table.

b. Does Lefty have an incentive to move to the left, to the 1/4 mile mark?

c. If Lefty moves to the 1/4 mile mark, does Righty have an incentive to move to the right, to the 3/4 mile mark?

d. What are the equilibrium locations for the two sellers? How does it differ from the equilibrium when everyone bought an ice cream cone, regardless of the distance to the nearest seller?

e. Recall the discussion of the median-voter rule. Suppose voters are subject to alienation: A citizen will not vote in a budget election if the difference between the voter’s preference and the politician’s position is too large. Does the median-voter rule still hold?