The effect of predatory rent-seeking on household saving and portfolio choices: A cross section analysis

The existence of predatory behavior, when measured by the number of lawyers per capita and the crime rate, seems to have an impact on saving and investment behavior in U.S. households. Where the risk of redistribution are lowest, the incentives to save are higher and, a fortiriori, the willingness to invest in highly vulnerable financial instruments is enhanced. Either because of low saving rates or because of disintermediation, households in states where the risks of redistribution are greater avoid accumulating financial assets.Recent years have seen a considerable decline in the U.S. saving rate. There is also evidence of large differences in saving rates from one country to another, with U.S. households among the lowest savers. Yet not all of these variations have been explained satisfactorily in empirical studies based on conventional theory. Perhaps one explanation which has been inadequately studied is the reduced expected retirement time horizon whether it be due to objective conditions such as retirement age and life expectancy or to uncertainty. Some reasons for myopic planning horizons are macroeconomic instability (McCauley and Zimer, 1989), the possibility of nuclear war (Slemrod, 1982, 1986 and 1989); Henderschott and Peek, 1985 and 1987); and the fear of socio-political conflict (Stewart and Venieris, 1985). I have suggested and tested here yet another factor: the fear of future redistribution. Using differences in interest income across U.S. states, this paper shows that fear of redistribution does seem to have a large influence on saving behavior.     

Toxicological analysis of a fatal baclofen (Lioresal) ingestion

A fatality following ingestion of the drug baclofen (Lioresal) is described. Baclofen was identified in urine by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. After derivatization with trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid, baclofen was quantitated in serum and urine by high-performance liquid chromatography. The concentration of baclofen was 17 mg/L in serum and 760 mg/L in urine collected approximately 12 h after the overdose. To our knowledge, this is only the second reported fatality involving a baclofen overdose. The previous case did not include quantitation of baclofen in any biological fluid.     

CHILD SUPPORT IN THE UNITED STATES

This article reports on the results of a telephone survey conducted with a random sample of households screened for eligibility to receive child support in the state of Colorado. Despite the recent enactment of ambitious child legislation at the state and federal levels, the accounts of 731 custodial parents reveal a massive level of unmet need, with child support problems being most extreme for those never married to the chilďs other parent. These mothers typically lack an order establishing a legal obligation to pay child support and have incomes that fall below the poverty level. Overall, women of Colorado with child support orders received only about half of the support they were due, and 73 per cent of all women due support reported that they had experienced problems in collecting support either currently or in the past. The average amount of back due child support owed to the 60 per cent of women in the sample who reported an arrearage was $12,000. Analysis revealed that payment behaviour tracked with the length of time since separation with payment patterns worsening over time and irregular visitation and/or the presence of problems around child access. Female obligors exhibited the same payment patterns as their male counterparts but were more apt to maintain visitation. The article documents the dramatic, negative economic consequences of irregular or missing child support payments for custodial parents, and discusses the additional legal and financial commitments needed to improve the situation. The efficacy of private child support transfers to achieve an adequate standard of living for all children is called into question.     

The race may be close but my horse is going to win: Wish fulfillment in the 1980 presidential election

Using data from the 1980 U.S. presidential election, we investigate the extent to which voter expectations about candidate electoral success and margin of victory are subject to systematic biases. In particular, we examine the extent to which candidate supporters overestimate their choice's likelihood of success. After finding a rather dramatic bias in the direction of wishful thinking, we review alternative explanations of this phenomenon, including a model based on nonrandom contact networks and one based on preference-related differences in expectations about exogenous variables that could affect the election outcome.     

Charles Taylor, Marx and Marxism

Charles Taylor's engagement with Marx and the Marxist tradition has been relatively neglected in the literature on his work. This is a strange omission, because he was not only a pivotal figure in the development of the New Left, but also wrote many pieces which critically engaged with the main principles of Marx and Marxism. This paper re-examines Taylor's engagement with Marxism and thereby exposes a neglected element in his political philosophy. The following themes emerge: the self; Taylor's conception of the affirmation of ordinary life; democracy; ecology; and religion. In one area at least, the affirmation of ordinary life, a crucial element of Marxism is retained and positively endorsed by Taylor. In relation to the other themes, while he raises important issues for Marxist theory, he is, at times, far too quick to dismiss Marx's arguments and also misses similarities between those arguments and his own work.