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Recent studies into price transmission have recognized the important role played by transport and transaction costs. Threshold models are one approach to accommodate such costs. We develop a generalized Threshold Error Correction Model to test for the presence and form of threshold behavior in price transmission that is symmetric around equilibrium. We use monthly wheat, maize, and soya prices from the United States, Argentina, and Brazil to demonstrate this model. Classical estimation of these generalized models can present challenges but Bayesian techniques avoid many of these problems. Evidence for thresholds is found in three of the five commodity price pairs investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Homelessness is a pervasive feature in most urban areas in the U.S. The U.S. Congress defines a homeless person as a person who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence and is living either in a shelter, on the streets, or in public places not ordinarily used as living accommodations. The purpose of this essay is to examine the relationship between downtown redevelopment and homeless policy. The causes of homelessness are numerous, from personal problems to social structural forces. Social structural forces such as the non-availability of low-cost housing, gentrification and urban renewal, cutbacks in welfare, deindustrialization, and global economic restructuring have contributed to increases in the homeless population. Many cities across the U.S. are more interested in problems caused by homelessness than in the problems that cause homelessness. According to some researchers homelessness presents two distinct problems for local governments. The first problem is the social problem of having people who are without shelter. The second problem is the land values and the use of public space.

Presents a study which examined the role of the Political Action Committee's (PAC) contributions on influencing congressional votes in sugar legislation, in the United States. Background information on the US sugar policy; Information on theory of the voting equation; Methodology used to conduct the study; Results of the study.