We extend the basic model of trade protection with special interest groups developed in Grossman and Helpman (1994) to include monopolistic competition with variable markups. We find the following results: (i) for sectors organized into lobbies the endogenous import tariff is always positive and...

This paper analyzes the issue of choosing a socially efficient rule on how to leave the toilet seat. Leaving the seat as it is after usage is found to be the best rule over a wide parameters space. Using a loss function minimization approach, factors such as relative toilet usage, frequency of...