Rakhal Sarker

Co-existence in Selected Mixed Arab-Jewish Cities in Israel: By Choice or by Default?

In this paper, we use a data-set based on a survey of the perceptions about co-existence between Arabs and Jews as held by the inhabitants of five mixed Arab-Jewish cities in Israel: Acre, Haifa, Jaffa, Lydda and Ramla. Our main purpose is to determine the relative importance of various factors which contribute to the level of satisfaction with co-existence in Israel as perceived by the inhabitants themselves. Our choice of explanatory variables is motivated by a consideration of issues relating to the specific historical context of Jews and Arabs living together in these cities; and, an awareness of more general sociological considerations which may bear on the degree of satisfaction with co-existence. Our empirical analysis suggests that the variables relating to the specific historical evolution of Arab-Jewish relations-especially in the context of the urban setting-have the greatest explanatory power in understanding perceptions of co-existence. Basic sociological factors also hold some explanatory importance.

The Fast Decay Process in Outdoor Recreational Activities and the Use of Alternative Count Data Models

Despite a number of significant advances in count data modeling during the last two decades and the growing popularity of these models in recreation demand analysis, standard count data models are inadequate to address the fast decay process of the dependent variable and the associated long tail. This article demonstrates how one and two-parameter alternative count data models can be used to properly model the fast decay process and the associated long tail commonly observed in recreation demand analysis. Econometric results from an illustrative application suggest satisfactory performance of four of the eight alternative count data models proposed in this article.

Four case studies of agri-food CVDs and a proposal for reforming national administered protection agencies

This paper reviews the role of national administered protection agencies, whose primary responsibility is the enforcement of national trade remedy laws. After reviewing four recent cases of trade disputes between Canada and the United States, it is argued that the role of national administered protection agencies should be changed. The growth of regional trading blocks, the increasing use of anti-dumping and countervailing duty actions against fairly traded imports and the additional responsibilities assumed by the WTO in administering the Agreement on Agriculture strongly suggest that all trade disputes should be taken to the WTO for settlement. The role of national administered protection agencies should be changed to make them agents for trade liberalization. This would involve these agencies taking on three primary functions: (i) as transparency agents; (ii) as investigatory agents; and (iii) as advocacy agents.