ABSTRACT
When economists speak of applying theory, they are usually thinking of designing strategies, making plans, and formulating policies. The wave of neo-conservative thinking, the election of right of centre politicians, the disenchantment with the performance of public bureaucracies and the difficult fiscal positions of most governments in Anglo-American democracies, explain why a good number of theorists have given up and turned to the market to bring about the "Pareto Optimum." The theory of international and interregional trade has, however, moved a long way from Ricardo's concept of comparative advantage, illustrated by exchange of "tuns of wine" from Portugal and "bolts of cloth" from England. Theorists, even those with a prescriptive bend, paid little attention to the role public bureaucracies would be called upon to play to implement the policies and programs. The models of organization, line, and staff, the way subjects are studied, and the hierarchical nature of government departments and agencies are pure nineteenth-century administrative techniques.
