Future Generations: A Prioritarian View

Should we remain neutral between our interests and those of future generations? Or are we ethically permitted or even required to depart from neutrality and engage in some measure of intergenerational discounting? This Article addresses the problem of intergenerational discounting by drawing on two different intellectual traditions: the social welfare function (“SWF”) tradition in welfare economics, and scholarship on “prioritarianism” in moral philosophy. Unlike utilitarians, prioritarians are sensitive to the distribution of well-being. They give greater weight to well-being changes affecting worse-off individuals. Prioritarianism can be captured, formally, through an SWF which sums a concave transformation of individual utility, rather than simply summing unweighted utilities in utilitarian fashion. The Article considers the appropriate structure of a prioritarian SWF in intergenerational cases. The simplest case involves a fixed and finite intertemporal population. In that case, I argue, policymakers can and should maintain full neutrality between present and future generations. No discount factor should be attached to the utility of future individuals. Neutrality becomes trickier when we depart from this simple case, meaning: (1) “non-identity” problems, where current choices change the identity of future individuals; (2) population-size variation, where current choices affect not merely the identity of future individuals, but the size of the world’s future population (this case raises the specter of what Derek Parfit terms “the repugnant conclusion,” i.e., that dramatic reductions in the average level of individual well-being might be compensated for by increases in population size); or (3) an infinite population. The Article grapples with the difficult question of outfitting a prioritarian SWF to handle non-identity problems, population-size variation, and infinite populations. It tentatively suggests that a measure of neutrality can be maintained even in these cases

Analysis and Determination of the Lateral Distance Parameters of Vehicles When Overtaking an Electric Bicycle from the Point of View of Road Safety

Recent years have witnessed an increasing number of electric bicycles on the roads and a rise in the number of road crashes involving e-bicyclists. There are various causes of road crashes involving e-bicyclists. Out of the total number of fatalities in traffic, bicyclists account for 9% in the Republic of Serbia. Road crashes occurring when motor vehicles overtake bicyclists make up 13% of the total number of road crashes involving bicyclists. Having in mind the above-mentioned, an experimental study has been conducted in order to analyze whether the use of helmets and reflective vests, different vehicle categories, and the speed of electric bicycles affect the lateral distance when overtaking e-bicycles. This research analyzed the lateral distance of 1228 vehicles overtaking an e-bicyclist. There are statistically significant differences in the lateral distance when overtaking an e-bicycle regarding helmet use, different vehicle categories overtaking the e-bicycle, and different speeds of the e-bicycle. The results showed that a faster speed of an e-bicycle led to a shorter lateral distance when overtaking it and that SUV drivers (along with motorcycle drivers) had the shortest lateral distance when overtaking e-bicycles

Vulnerability: Too Vague and Too Broad?

© 2009 Cambridge University Press. Online edition of the journal is available at http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=CQHImagine you are walking down a city street. It is windy and raining. Amidst the bustle you see a young woman. She sits under a railway bridge, hardly protected from the rain and holds a woolen hat containing a small number of coins. You can see that she trembles from the cold. Or imagine seeing an old woman walking in the street at dusk, clutching her bag with one hand and a walking stick with the other. A group of male youths walk behind her without overtaking, drunk and in the mood for mischief. It doesn't need an academic to say what vulnerability is. We can all see it, much more often than we care to

"Kulturregion Vestlandet"? : føresetnader og utfordringar for ein felles kulturregion på Vestlandet

Det går for tida føre seg mange prosessar når det gjeld utforminga av det framtidige regionale Noreg. Så langt har kulturlivet og kultursektoren stått på utsida av desse prosessane. Kulturlivet plar gjerne stritte imot forvaltningsreformer. I denne rapporten teiknar vi – etter oppdrag frå fylkeskulturstyresmaktene i dei fire vestlandsfylka – konturane av innhaldet i eit mogleg regionalt kulturforsøk og utvida kultursamarbeid på Vestlandet. Utgreiinga tek til orde for at fylkeskommunane etablerer forsøksprosjektet ”Kulturregion Vestlandet”. Prosjektet skal initiere felles kulturtiltak i regionen, og vere ein overbygning over eksisterande tiltak og prosessar. På nokre avgrensa område bør òg prosjektet overta det ansvaret og dei økonomiske verkemidla staten i dag har. Scenekunstfeltet og idrettsområdet peikar seg her ut. Gjennom regionale partnerskap og avtalebasert styring kan den ”nye” kulturregionen stå for ein samla regional utviklingsorientert politikk på desse felta. Også på fleire andre område vil eit utvida kultursamarbeid medverke til å styrkje Vestlandet som region

State of Utah v. Grant Allen Adamson : Brief of Appellant

Appeal from the Third Judicial District Court, Salt Lake County, Utah, Hon. M. J. Bronson, Judge, Presidin

The Influence of Occupational Driver Stress on Work-related Road Safety: An Exploratory Review

Research has identified a number of stressors that could impact on the occupational driver by increasing stress levels and, for some individuals, causing adverse behaviour and effects, for example, aggressive behaviour, fatigue, inattention/distraction, and substance abuse. For safety professionals and employers, one way to reduce the effects of occupational driver stress is to change perceptions so that management and drivers recognise that work-related driving is as important as other work-related tasks. This article explores relevant literature in relation to driver stress and suggests additions to risk management processes and safety procedures/policies, including assigning sufficient basic resources to target occupational stress (particularly occupational driver stress)

Parley Marsh v. Robert Bryce Irvine and James Blackwood Neil : Respondent\u27s Brief

Appeal from Judgment of the Third District Court for Salt Lake County, Honarable Merrill C. Faux, Judg