Constitutional Conflicts,Moral Dilemmas,and Legal Solutions

The article focuses on the definition of constitutional conflicts as moral dilemmas. It discusses the conception of tragic conflicts by which “loss” is a distinctive feature that identifies both moral and constitutional dilemmas. It also asserts the peculiarity of constitutional conflicts vis‐à‐vis moral dilemmas, as well as the possibility of legal solutions to constitutional conflicts.     

Sweetening the US Legislature: The Remarkable Success of the Sugar Lobby

The US sweetener industry comprises the production and processing of sugarcane, sugar beet and corn and, more recently, non-caloric products. The industry has always been protected by federal legislation. Such legislation has had positive and negative impacts on domestic sugar prices, which have remained relatively stable but well above the world price. José Alvarez discusses three factors behind that protective status: the industry's economic importance, the large representation of sweetener-producing states in the US Congress, and a powerful and successful lobby. Under current conditions, no change in the status quo should be expected. The major potential contingency on the horizon could be an agreement reached at the World Trade Organization eliminating existing levels of worldwide protection. Free trade negotiations have added new pressures to the US support programme. Time will tell whether or not the domestic success of the US sweetener industry can be duplicated in the international arena.