Of course cost benefit analysis can be done and is all the time. My problem was to try and understand how prices can be used without assuming that utility can be measured in interpersonal units. It is a conceptual problem. Certainly it would not be a good idea to use cost-benefit analysis in deciding where to dump radioactive waste, or dump other pollutants, or in many other areas such as health care. Actual cost-benefit analysis is often a technique that advances class interests masquerading as some sort of objective technical analysis I think politicians measure in terms of votes lost or gained and favors owed among other factors and then decide upon the project that will best advance their interests. Then they pay a person to do cost benefit analysis to support what theyhad already concluded.This must be made clear to the analyst or they could use the wrong prices and discount incorrectly creating embarassment for the politician and lack of further work for the analyst.
Cheers, Ken Hanly --- Max Sawicky <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > If C-B is not possible, sports fans, how would your > preferred from of government make a decision about > whether or not to undertake a project? > > > Blog: http://kenthink7.blogspot.com/index.html Blog: http://kencan7.blogspot.com/index.html