What should we mean by human well-being across the generations? How ought we to take the interests of people in the distant future into account when making our own decisions? In which normative language should we deliberate over the rate at which our society invests for the future? What considerations should inform the way a society balances its investment portfolio among produced capital, human capital and natural capital? What role do social capital and other forms of enabling assets, such as financial institutions, play in protecting and promoting well-being across the generations? What should the balance be between private and public investment in the overall investment that a generation makes for the future?

For many people today, there is a simple answer: “Let individuals in the market-place decide.”

That is not an outlandish thought. The idea would be that people have a right to judge for themselves how best to reach answers to the questions.