By Kit
Note: Sorry I have not been posting things recently, I've been busy with exams and now that I'm done I hope to post things a tad more regularly.
As I've begin reading about economics on my own time the one thing that has struck me is largely how simple are the basic tenants of economics. Yes, the application of them is complex but the core is quite easy to understand.
For example, such things as Law of Supply and Demand, Prices, and Knowledge Problem, etcetera are surprisingly easy to understand, provided they are explained well.
And the best video I've seen that covers many of the basic aspects of economics is this magnificent video produced by Learn Liberty:
Let's see what it explains:
Knowledge Problem: There is no way for the railroad engineer to know everything he needs to know about what materials work best for the country.
Law of Supply and Demand: As supply of something goes up the cost to buy it goes down, i.e. it gets cheaper. Therefore the railroad engineer will more likely buy those materials that are the cheapest.
Prices: The way he knows the cost is the price attached to it.
Ta-da!
Note: Sorry I have not been posting things recently, I've been busy with exams and now that I'm done I hope to post things a tad more regularly.
As I've begin reading about economics on my own time the one thing that has struck me is largely how simple are the basic tenants of economics. Yes, the application of them is complex but the core is quite easy to understand.
For example, such things as Law of Supply and Demand, Prices, and Knowledge Problem, etcetera are surprisingly easy to understand, provided they are explained well.
And the best video I've seen that covers many of the basic aspects of economics is this magnificent video produced by Learn Liberty:
Let's see what it explains:
Knowledge Problem: There is no way for the railroad engineer to know everything he needs to know about what materials work best for the country.
Law of Supply and Demand: As supply of something goes up the cost to buy it goes down, i.e. it gets cheaper. Therefore the railroad engineer will more likely buy those materials that are the cheapest.
Prices: The way he knows the cost is the price attached to it.
Ta-da!
20 comments:
Howdy everyone! I am back! I'm not happy about it, but I am back! Sadly, I don't have an article planned for today as I have no idea what has been happening in the world... and that made me very happy. :) I will post one soon.
In the meantime, thanks to Kit and Bev for the fantastic job they did keeping the place running!
Sorry you had to come back. Just to ease you into back into reality...sadly, no, you didn't bypass the 2016 election cycle and Obama is still the president. But other than that...nothing else has changed either. ;-)
Kit - So is that why a pound of butter is now $6.99 at my local grocery store? Has there been a sudden milking cow shortage that I was not aware of?
Thanks Bev! It's HARD to be back, let me tell you. Disney is indeed the happiest place on Earth and the Disney Cruise was amazing.
Glad to have you back Andrew but I have to disagree. Orlando is on the precipice of hell. I hate going there. It was crowded, the food was bad, and the flight was filled with 2-4 year old screaming kids. And I didn't even go to the parks.
"So is that why a pound of butter is now $6.99 at my local grocery store? Has there been a sudden milking cow shortage that I was not aware of?"
Remember, this video doesn't take into account a host of Federal, state, and local regulatory agencies that tax and regulate the butter industry.
"...And I didn't even go to the parks."
See, Koshcat, that was a mistake. Once you get to inside the gates of the Magic Kingdom, all that horribleness just goes away. Really, I am not kidding. When I went a few years ago, I was bracing for cloyingly "happy" workers pretending to be sickeningly sweet fake happy. But it was just the opposite. Every one was genuinely friendly and helpful. And I was most impressed with is how they really did cater to children in the best way. And Disney is so good at crowd control that it never felt crowded. I hope that it was still the same.
Koshcat, Bev is right. I can't speak to Orlando, but Disney was amazing. The minute you enter the Disney world, everything changes.
Bev, The employees were amazing. They were super helpful and very, very happy, but it was genuine. They were very proud of their jobs and all of them seemed to love being with kids. We had an amazing experience the whole time.
In terms of crowding, this was their low attendance week and we never had any crowd problems at all. We barely even waited at rides.
I will concede that I may be wrong, but I'm also suspicious that Andrew and Bev have either been brainwashed or have Stockholm Syndrome. I would rather get kicked in the groin than go to a Disney Theme Park.
On another note, a new Star Trek is coming out next July: Beyond. Beyond what? I don't know.
But Kit, it's butter. I am beginning to believe it will just be cheaper to buy an actual cow than to purchase non-regulated dairy products. Milk is cheap because the Feds mandate that it be cheap.
Bev, it is a secret but Bloomberg started a process of differential pricing. When you walk into a store they check your height and weight to form a BMI. Based on your levels, you may have either a doubling or tripling of the price of fatty foods. So just have one of your skinny friends buy it for you but don't let the Gestapo catch you. You could also buy a cow or goat and make your own butter to see on the black market but that is even more dangerous. Or you can just eat your gruel with pride and nothing else.
Koshcat, I'm sure it's not for everyone, but I have to say I really really loved it, and if I could move there forever, I would. It was that happy of a place.
Bloomberg! I shoulda' known! No guns, no butter, no smokes! What next? Mandatory Fitbits for all so they can monitor our walking?
Sort of like Calypso's Island?
Less smoking.
Actually, I was very tempted to move to St. Thomas. Wow. That was a fantastic place!
Okay, I watched the video, Kit. Rah, free markets that decide! It is true, people don't know what they really want until it's in front of them to decide and at a price that they can afford. The perfect example is the the Ipad. No one knew that they needed or wanted one until it became available. Then people saw the value and voila! Now everyone "needs" them. And other markets opened up (development of various and sundry apps and such) that made the need greater. And the skills needed to use the apps made workers who have the skills more valuable.
I remember when the Japanese introduced the camera function on the cellphhone. I remember thinking "why would anyone need or want that?" Now, it has become a very valuable (and sometimes extremely annoying) asset.
Create a supply and the demand will follow...except for maybe pet rocks. That kind of ran it's course.
Bev,
I will never understand pet rocks.
re: Pet rocks
Kit - You just had to be there. But then people realized that they could just go out in their yard, find a rock and paint eyes on it, the whole industry fell apart. I had my own "rock" band that I carried around in HS that I "formed" myself. Hey, don't judge. It was the '70's. ;-P
"Hey, don't judge. It was the '70's."
Why do so many Boomers end up saying that?
Well, let's just say that one day you will understand when you find the moment you find you have to say it too. 8-)
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