Economic Perspectives on Peaceand Conflict

U.S. war costs: Two parts temporary, one part permanent

“…Nor has it assessed the costs borne by opposing sides in conflicts nor the costs of military inaction. As a result, I have little to say about the calculus of military conflict that might lead governments to war or peace, which is a clear gap in our knowledge and a subject of much interesting research (Blattman and Miguel, 2010; Garfinkel and Skaperdas, 2010). My goals have been to illustrate the life cycle of veterans’ benefits and assess their fiscal implications, which are large, and to explore the economic costs associated with war wounds.…”

“…Research into the economics of warfare is broad-based and vibrant (Garfinkel and Skaperdas, 2010), and cost forecasts and estimates are important elements in our understanding of the behavior of governments (Clark, 1931; Goldin and Lewis, 1975; Edelstein, 2000; Nordhaus, 2002; Wallsten and Kosec, 2005; Stiglitz and Bilmes, 2008; Davis et al, 2009; Glick and Taylor, 2010). …”

The Economics of Coercion and Conflict: An Introduction

“…Garfinkel and Skaperdas (2012) define conflict by the presence of "adversarial investments," required for the "threat or use of coercive means." In the words of the OED conflict is inherently violent: adversaries engage in "fighting, contending with arms, martial strife."…”

“…On the whole, however, my research has addressed other aspects of public coercion, those that have lent support to arbitrary power including the unrestrained enforcement of arbitrary laws, when the government is relatively unconcerned about personal freedoms and private entitlements and does 2 In a similar spirit Garfinkel and Skaperdas (2012) limit their definition of conflict to exclude those investments in adversarial means that bring external benefits to third parties. They intend this to exclude from the sphere of conflict the competitive tournaments and sporting events that raise productivity or provide enjoyment.…”

The Economics of Coercion and Conflict

“…Others have done the same for interstate conflict (Offer, 1989: 7-20;Fearon, 1995;Bueno de Mesquita, 2006, Brauer and van Tuyll, 2008: 1-44, Smith, 2009If unresolved disagreement over entitlements lies at the root of conflict, how is conflict resolved? Garfinkel and Skaperdas (2012) define conflict by the presence of "adversarial investments", required for the "threat or use of coercive means." In the words of the OED conflict is inherently violent: adversaries engage in "fighting, contending with arms, martial strife."…”