Welcome!
Are you ready for another round of IUP education in action?!?!
Welcome to my weblog. It isn't much. Keep your expectations tiny...then you won't be whiney.
Q: Why do we not think twice about taking advantage of each other on a daily basis but when phrased that way we get upset?
A: I don't know. I guess in part it depends on how it is phrased.
Explainer: We learned in Econ 121 and/or 122 that people and countries have comparative advantages. That is, we have lower opportunity costs doing some things and higher opportunity costs doing other things. We are better off if we tend to focus on those things we do relatively better and "buy" the things we do rather "costly". When we buy smokes or peas at the store, this is what is going on. We all feel good. No one is getting ripped off. However, if we pause to think that those peas actually come from Brazil rather than Illinois, we think "omg, we're losing jobs". Well, any pea farmer whether in Idaho or Costa Rica has "stolen" your pea farming job. If you think you can produce peas cheaper than they can, by all means do it. Otherwise, take advantage of the fact that you can buy peas pretty cheap. And the pea farmer will be happy taking advantage of your willingness to buy. These "opportunity costs" and its implications know no borders.
It's all good. (Ok, maybe not "all good". We'll have to think about this to make sure. Welcome to Econ 345.)
Enjoy toothpaste for dinner. Be careful. You could spend hours here.
JJ
Welcome to my weblog. It isn't much. Keep your expectations tiny...then you won't be whiney.
Q: Why do we not think twice about taking advantage of each other on a daily basis but when phrased that way we get upset?
A: I don't know. I guess in part it depends on how it is phrased.
Explainer: We learned in Econ 121 and/or 122 that people and countries have comparative advantages. That is, we have lower opportunity costs doing some things and higher opportunity costs doing other things. We are better off if we tend to focus on those things we do relatively better and "buy" the things we do rather "costly". When we buy smokes or peas at the store, this is what is going on. We all feel good. No one is getting ripped off. However, if we pause to think that those peas actually come from Brazil rather than Illinois, we think "omg, we're losing jobs". Well, any pea farmer whether in Idaho or Costa Rica has "stolen" your pea farming job. If you think you can produce peas cheaper than they can, by all means do it. Otherwise, take advantage of the fact that you can buy peas pretty cheap. And the pea farmer will be happy taking advantage of your willingness to buy. These "opportunity costs" and its implications know no borders.
It's all good. (Ok, maybe not "all good". We'll have to think about this to make sure. Welcome to Econ 345.)
Enjoy toothpaste for dinner. Be careful. You could spend hours here.
JJ
posted by Atomic Kid at 4:20 PM
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