Re: Europe, the US, and Environmentalism

[Alberto Monteiro]

Doug Pensinger wrote:
>
>So what is the dollar value you place on an unborn child?
>
IMHO, this is the worst mistake of the current "Economical"
approach to this problem - because the value of an unborn
child is zero or negative. However, Economy *can't* measure
the value of the *idea* that there is a value in an unborn
child.

This is what I am trying to say.

Cost/benefit analysis - if we want to take it seriously - *must*
put a *value* on the ideas that are being dismissed due to
applying cost/benefit analysis to any problem.


The concrete example I gave - that if we judge that the life
of a child is more valuable than the life of an old person
who will die in two years *then* we being to devaluate
all human lifes - just shows how pointless cost/benefit
analysis is.

Alberto Monteiro