Abstract

How should we define the “feasible set”? What does it mean to assert that a policy is the “best feasible option”? Feasibility is most plausibly a matter of degree rather than of kind. We therefore must think about how to do normative economics with a fuzzy social budget constraint. I consider a number of ways of proceeding, including a twodimensional social welfare function, weighting both desirability and feasibility. Focusing on the difficulties in the feasibility concept may help us resolve some outstanding policy disagreements.