Embedded Files
Energy Policies and Risks on Energy Markets (2011)
- A critique of de Joode et al (2004), examining 8 policies the Dutch government might have undertaken to secure the energy supply of the Netherlands in 2003 by cost-benefit analysis.
(Note that this is best viewed as a presentation using the hyperlinks within the document)
Making Social Welfare Judgements (2010)
The notion of social welfare is of great significance when considering the motivations of policy makers serving their constituencies. It has often been considered implausible to compare the extent to which Adam prefers an apple to Eve’s preference over a pear. However, these evaluations are made, in principle, every day by judges and politicians who must adhere to both the predetermined ethical standard imposed by society as well as the preferences individuals have within society. It is the disagreement between individuals which sparks the very need for a social choice. Thus, it is only natural and appropriate to attempt to mathematically model these judgments based off of an aggregation of preferences.
The Arrow Impossibility Theorem (2010)
The role of Arrow’s theorem has been far reaching in the field of welfare economics. Arrow produced a mathematically rigorous result that severely straightjackets the ability of law makers to aggregate preferences over their constituencies. However, where any kind of leadership system exists in a community and wherever voting occurs, social judgments are made- good or bad, right or wrong, moral or immoral. Thus, a deep understanding of Arrow’s result can serve to mitigate many of the malfeasances of voting rules and recognize the ethical tradeoffs implicit in any aggregating social welfare function over the preferences of the people.
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