I would bet that both you and Thomas Sowell would place great value on “productive” experience. Years of coping with government dictates as an employer, parent, or private contractor might offer a person a more valuable perspective for public service than years spent working in the government process.
As Sowell says:
Economists may say that there is no such thing as a free lunch but politicians get elected by promising free lunches.
“Productive” experience might incline a candidate to lean more toward the economists’ perspective.
