"The standard public goods argument for education . . .
For those who want to know, Lott proves this by estimating the following equation:
CURRENT EDUCATIONAL EXPENDITURES PER CAPITA i =
c + b 5 TOTALITARIANISM RATING i +
b 6 REAL PER CAPITA GDP i +
b 7 (GOVERMENT NET OF SCHOOL EXPENDITURES/GDP)I +
b 8 (TOTALITARIANISM RATING*REAL PER CAPITA GDP)i +
u 2i (2)
>>>>>>>>
This is not a L&E study; it's a public choice model, and dumb as all get-out, as you note.
L&E and public choice research overlap substantially in terms of academics and subject matter. We had a discussion here some years ago, so I won't rehash, but public choice is not inherently reactionary either, though a majority of those who practice it are on the right. A mainstream treatment of public choice, incl a guide to the literature, can be found in Dennis Mueller's survey published by Cambridge UP.
mbs