9 research outputs found
Fiscal Stability in Political Discourse: The Romanian Case
No full textAbstract
This article investigates the political resistance to fiscal stability institutions in Romanian context, as revealed in political discourse. To ascertain the a priori political predisposition against the fiscal stability framework, the theoretical findings of the public choice school of economics are utilized. Insights from the political discourse analysis body of literature are employed to the study of discourse against established fiscal stability institutions. Since the consensus arising from this literature is that politics is both acting and talking, the unit of analysis in our examination is the statement that can be classified as political discourse. After briefly analyzing the broader institutional context that provides the background for political discourse, the main storylines against fiscal stability recently emerged are reviewed. Seeking to determine the traits of the dominant political discourse against fiscal stability displayed by Romanian politicians in recent years, a quantitative assessment of the usage of these storylines is given. We find that publicly expressed disagreement with established fiscal stability institutions from the part of politicians and high-ranking bureaucrats has drastically increased over the analyzed period. The research has also revealed that the most employed storyline has been the one that belittles the significance of fiscal stability if the state uses the fiscal revenues for investing in transport infrastructure.</jats:p
Thinking about Bureaucracy: Mises versus Niskanen
No full textIn this paper, I oppose the Misesian insight on the problem of bureaucracy to the theory of Niskanen. Assuming that bureaucracy is merely a symptom of a more serious disease – namely socialism – the Misesian perspective is an analysis of the economic, political, and psychological consequences of the incentives and constraints that bureaucrats face. Niskanen’s analysis focuses on the characteristics of the political environment in which bureaucrats act. Applying the Public Choice theory to the study of bureaucratic behavior, Niskanen shows that bureaucrats have a strong incentive to try to maximize the bureau’s budget.Austrian economics, Public Choice, public sector economics, bureaucracy
Pollution and Property: Is Relevant Market Failure Theory?
No full textAn externality exists whenever a transaction creates a cost or a benefit for a party not directly involved. Pollution, such as smoke emitted into the air or sewage poured into the water is an externality.
In this paper I analyze the differences between Neo-classical and Austrian School of Economics regarding externalities and the best way to fight it. Neo-classicals are concerned about efficiency and they propose some forms of government intervention in order to alleviate pollution: taxes and tradable permits. Austrians seek to remove interpersonal conflict related to pollution and show that although taxes and permits could theoretically work, they fail to eliminate conflicts among people
INCENTIVES AND CONSTRAINTS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR: THE BEHAVIOR OF THE RENTSEEKING BUREAUCRAT
Get PDFThe aim of this paper is to analyze the incentives and constraints that a typical bureaucrat face in his or her daily activity and to present some conclusions related to the most likely behavior of bureaucrats. We begin by analyzing the behavior toward advantage seeking. We then apply the hypothesis of rent-seeking behavior to the activity of bureaucrats. After discussing the main differences between the incentives and constraints of the managers of privately owned enterprises and bureaucrats, we conclude that the activity of rent-seeking characterizes the activity of bureaucrats. Finally, we identify the rule of law as the best institutional arrangement for discouraging the rent-seeking activity of bureaucrats.institutional analysis, rent-seeking, bureaucracy, rule of law.
Not Only Economics: The Political Economy of Euro Adoption in Romania
Get PDFThe multifaceted interplay of economic and political factors in the process of euro adoption suggests the opportunity to take a political economy perspective on this complex issue. In this sense, a number of key political-economy related issues can be distilled in relation to the process of euro adoption, which will structure the following analysis. What are the key national winners and losers of this possible event? What role has interest groups pressure played in this process? Under what circumstances may bureaucracies such as the central bank body of experts act as a deterrent for the political end that is the single currency adoption? How are internationally exposed companies expected to behave and to promote their interests in relation to this event? What is the relative importance of the internal politics dynamic for euro adoption? We rely on process tracing to approach these questions for the Romanian case. Policy documents, newspaper articles, academic articles, economic indicators, and elite interviews are used to create an analytical narrative based both on a one-point-in-time description of the situation and on a timeline that lists the sequence of some relevant events. We argue that a specific combination of economic and political factors led to the failed euro adoption in Romania
A Century of Romanian Philosophy
Get PDFThe present work tries to synthesize the main contributions of severaRomanian philosophers like Titu Maiorescu, Vasile Canta, Petre P.Negulescu, Constantin Rádulescu~Motru, Mircea Florian, D.D. Rosca,Lucían Blaga, TudorVianu\u27s, who significantly influenced the intelectualdebate of the XXth century. After a brief presentation of the peculiarsituation of the Romanian philosophical research, there are examineda series of themes which, on the author\u27s view, are really significant forstydying the genesis, the development and the transformation of thedifferent philosophical ideas.El presente trabajo intenta sintetizar las principales contribuciones de algunos filósofos rumanos tales como Titu Maiorescu, Vasile Conta, Petre P. Negulescu, Constantine Radelescu, Mircea Florian, D.D. Rosca, Lucian Blaga y Tudor Vianu quienes han influido en el debate intelectual del siglo XX. Después de una breve presentación de la situación peculiar de la investigación filosófica rumana, son examinados una serie de temas, que desde la perspectiva del autor, son realmente relevantes para el estudio de la génesis, el desarrollo y la transformación de las diferentes ideas filosóficas en Rumania.
Market Changes in the Energy and Green Energy Sector During the COVID-19 Crisis: A Global Perspective
Get PDFThe objective of this study was to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
energy and electricity industry, with a particular focus on green energy sources such as wind
and solar energy. The analysis provided a global perspective, based on a panel of 45 countries
that represent more than 90% of the world’s GDP. The analysis was structured in two steps:
a counterfactual analysis based on the mean and variance of the country data sample for the
14 indicators and the 45 countries in the panel and a counterfactual analysis that looked at
the statistical significance of the difference of mean between the data sets referring to the
time of the pandemic and before the time of the pandemic using the t-student test of 2 samples
assuming unequal variances between samples. For the pandemic time, the analysis took into
consideration two years (2020 and 2021), and the benchmark year was 2019. The
counterfactual analysis included a short-term perspective based on a comparative analysis
with the dynamic of the year before the crisis (2019/2018 dynamic) and a long-term
perspective based on a comparative analysis with the multiannual average dynamic
(2019/2015 – 5 years). The study results indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a
decline in global energy and electricity production, a partial reduction in global greenhouse
gas emissions, a partial improvement in the global trade balance with energy and electricity,
a decrease in global energy and electricity consumption, and a partial increase in global green
energy and electricity production and intensit
Speaking from other demonic bases of partiality
Get PDFAs Simandan (2019) argues, partiality and contingency are key to a politically attuned human geography. My commentary takes the author up on his suggestion that commentators examine the political implications of his framework. Critically, I use Sylvia Wynter’s analytic of ‘demonic ground’ to critique Simandan’s ‘demonic geography’ that underlies the epistemic framework he presents in this article. In doing so, this commentary focuses on the author’s conceptualization of intersectionality and diversity, arguing instead for a more fundamental critique of the geopolitical location of post-humanist thought itself
