Sunday, December 17, 2006

Discounting: Morally indefensible but mathematically indispensible?

When we make choices that have very long-term implications, how much weight goes on the welfare of future generations? Most economic models assume that we "discount" the future - a custom often dictated by mathematical necessity. In the NY Times, Hal Varian explains that discounting is at issue in some economists' critiques of a recent British government report on global warming.

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