Political decisions

The economy is in principle inhabited by sellers and buyers. These buy and sell on a market. They are all utilitarian, which basically means that a moral good is to maximize pleasure/happiness. A moral bad is to minimize pleasure/happiness [7, 8]. When related to economic and political decision making, pleasure/happiness is often translated into utility [9]. So what is the decision rationale for the buyer and seller And how does the market function ... 

In order to analyse the balance in view of the threat of exclusion from public financing, the author devises a demand equation with a two-stage budget allocation. The first step is to choose a therapeutic group, and the second is to choose the differentiated products. The co-payment acts as the price. The main conclusion is that when the product is included in public financing the health service can receive a discount if the political decisions are price-sensitive and the fixed cost of market entry in the event of inclusion is lower than the fixed cost of exclusion. In his study of price-cap regulation, the author insists that the mechanism should be continued in the long term, and that therefore it is necessary to account for the entire lifetime of the product and consider a discount factor. All this takes as its point of departure Abbott s 1995 model. 

Related to chemical pollution - referring to all kind of contamination (mineral and organic) - there is a clear distinction between point-source pollution and diffuse pollution. It appears that it is easier to take measures for point-source pollution, for instance, the improvement of the wastewater treatment plants, even if the treatments for specific compounds (pesticides, emerging compounds, etc.) still need further research. Measures for diffuse pollution can be more complex because some of them require real political decisions, for instance to interfere on agricultural practices to reduce inorganic and organic fertilisers. 

Increasingly, guidelines resulting from political decision process of the European Union influence national markets and global competition. In order to have an influence on behalf of the interests of the plastics industry, the Association of Plastics Producing Industries, (VKE), is reported to wish to intensify its communication with European political institutions. The VKE sees the discussion about the EU book on the environmental problems relating to PVC as particularly controversial, and does not consider that it takes important points of view sufficiently into account. The treatment of the PVC theme, is examined as an example of so-called europisation of the work of associations. (Article translated from Kunststoffe 91 (2001) 4, pp.26-27). 

In the European Union, ethanol is consumed in Spain, France, Sweden and Germany, especially after conversion into ETBE (ethyl tert-butyl ether), except in Sweden, but its use is increasing in all the other countries. New uses of bioethanol, e.g., in ethanol-direct fuel cells or as raw material for other chemicals, will further expand bioethanol use and production. Table 9.1 summarizes bioethanol production in different countries by 2004 [1], Owing to political decisions (EU directive setting at 5.75% the proportion of biofuels in fuels) and incentive taxation... 

The chapters of this book have been selected to provide an introduction to the catalytic issues of biomass conversion processes. The introductory chapters make clear the political decisions, especially in the EU, that drive biomass conversion technology, its prospects compared with other options for renewable energy, and the main technological options for conversion of biomass into secondary energy carriers. 

To conclude, research, applications and expectations with regard to emulsions are permanently evolving. Changes in the macro-economic context along with various political decisions (e.g., sustainable development. Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) directive for the European Union) are factors which influence the conditions in which emulsion-based products are fabricated and used. It is probable that these changes will motivate technological developments and new advances in emulsion science. 

In order to allow a concise and focussed decision, these variables form the basis for three questions we think are of political importance. All of these questions start with political decisions of different kinds and prompt the question of what the consequences would be for a certain variable. In order to facilitate the identification of the questions each group has been given an abbreviated name (Figure 2). 

Another serious problem is the fact that the maximal accepted residues for the different plant-conditioning and plant-protective agents are not harmonised and that, for example, in Germany for some substances the maximum value for residues in herbs and spices is generally set at 0.01 ppm. This value was solely set by a political decision and has no proven toxicological background. Moreover in a number of cases this value is near the lowest detection value of the particular substance. 

Equity or value conflicts involve the initial creation and distribution of property rights. Equity conflicts also arise when some citizens want to alter property rights by majority-rule political decisions instead of market transactions. Equity conflicts cannot be resolved with unanimous consent, while efficiency conflicts can. 

I say in part because, aFter taking into account the needs oF world, ruling out some products on the basis oF political judgements, there are still many choices left to be made simply on the basis oF the preferences of the consumer. Citizens act as consumers when they make political decisions about how the public world should be simply on the basis of whether their own interests will be furthered. This should be regarded as corruption. 

Congress could have responded to veterans claims by directing the YA to provide medical care and to pay compensation to the veterans, in the absence of any evidence about causation, basing its decision on compassion or other policy considerations. It didn t do that. In retrospect, it would have been a clean and clearly political decision as compared to the political decisions that ushered in a series of bad scientific decisions. 

Unfortunately, the EU Commission is disconcertingly vague on when to act or not to act under the principle. It states that the political decision to rely on the principle is a function of the... 

In reality, decisions about public health are often made on the basis of politics rather than science. If this were not so, more resources would be committed to controlling food poisoning relating to micro-organisms and less to relatively minor health hazards such as pesticides and environmental contaminants. Political decision-making needs to balance the needs of public health against legitimate consumer expectations. 

The intentional presentation of false and one-sided information to the public must automatically lead to false conceptions of reality and thence to unwise political decisions. The intentional presentation of disinformation through suppression of news or spreading of false news should be considered one of the most serious crimes of a political nature that can be committed in a democracy. 

Therefore, stakeholders are the key stone of current paradigm of political decision. They act as clients of this decision process, consequently the problem awareness is of critical importance for the creation of momentum for public intervention. This supports the view, for which many authors stand, that ignorance is the main threat to sustainability. 

The final traditional area of dispute concerns administrative costs. The phase I national allocation plans (NAPs) involved negotiation over allowances with a total asset value of almost 50 billion per year (assuming an average price of 20/tCO2). Political decisions on how to allocate these assets between sectors and individual installations naturally creates intensive lobby activity by all participants in order to obtain the maximum possible share of the rents.21 The time and energy devoted by companies, governments, and indeed consultancy and research sectors, to this enormous rent allocation process represents huge transactional costs.22... 

Moreover, the development of these biomaterials will depend, not only on technical aspects, but also on political decisions and trends. Only the determination of industrialised societies to progress will be the motor for the promotion of ecologically friendly materials. 

Following Topfer, scientists and politicians have to and should be allowed to admit their mistakes. Finally, it is absolutely impossible to decide on the basis of complete information. If we questioned ourselves and our decisions in the way Einstein did, then tolerance in society would increase. Each decision entails responsibility. For example, so-called geoengineering (i.e. technical interference with natural life cycles also mentioned as an option by Weizsacker) should at least be discussed in our modern world because societies - for example, in nuclear policy - have to react to potential mistakes of their neighbors, too. Topfer demanded, above all, the early integration of science in political decisions. With the Ethics Committee, Germany has shown how possible interaction of science and politics can work. 

A "political" decision issued on the same day as the peer review blasted the EPA study. After the EPA officials had been held hostage, President Carter declared a state of emergency in the Love Canal area, paving the way for evacuation of up to 710 families. 

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