The puzzle: In practice, national elections almost never hang on any one vote. Thus, you can be pretty sure that whichever candidate you vote for, or even if you do not vote at all, the outcome will be the same. It thus seems that you do not benefit yourself, your fellow citizens or your country by voting. Therefore, it seems, you shouldn't bother to vote, given that you could spend the time doing something more productive. This argument seems persuasive, and yet if everyone followed it, the consequences would be unacceptable.
What do you think?
NM