Some people voluntarily provide public goods while others take a free ride.
It suggests that altruism provides the best possible defense. In places, the dissertation relies on simple game theoretic models and intuitive economic equilibrium notions to analyze public good situations. The dissertation closes with a discussion of the government's role in providing public goods. If this is correct, other justifications for governmental provision must be summoned for goods of this form. I would first like to thank my advisor, Gilbert Harman, for his generous help.