Using the concepts of rational rati

Using the concepts of rational rational choice, we can assess public policy in new ways. Consider, for example, the problems of air pollutants and fuel consumption in the United States. Rather than a Honda, the general citizenry should not have to bear the common costs of that citizen’s choice (that is, the extra pollutants emitted and fuel consumed by the Cadillac), but neither should all the other citizens be denied the Cadillacs rather than a Honda, the general citizenry should not have to bear the common costs of that citizen’s choice (that is, the extra pollutants emitted and fuel consumed by the Cadillac), but neither should all the other citizens be denied the Cadillac if they really want them. Thus, a special tax should be established that taxes cars according to the pollutants they emit and the energy resources they consume; the more pollutants and gas, the higher the tax. In this method, the individual citizen still can buy a Cadillac, but the costs of the purchase to the general citizenry will be offset by the special tax that the owner is forced to pay by using that tax for pollution abatement and energy research programs. Such is the nature of assessment in the public choice literature.