Elena Gutierrez, Chapter One, Question 7

Being a teen who has had the opportunity to grow up in a middle class family and attend private school, my economic values or personal "utility" is quite different from a person growing up half way around the world. One of the first points that Charles Wheelan makes in chapter one is that each and every person has there own personal utility; that each person values and spends their time and money on different things. Wheelan gives the example of how some richer countries might value the preservation of rain forests simply because they can afford to preserve the environment, while other countries value the production of malaria preventing mosquito nets over the preservation of of the rain forest. I use to not understand why some countries would cut down trees, and destroy various animal's habitats. I use to wonder why those people didn't share my concern for the rain forests. Now I understand this societal economic issue. Some societies or groups of people can afford (whether it be time or money) to plant or save one or two trees, but other societies simply don't have the resources to desire to plant or save trees. Wheelan words the issue perfectly: "It is bad economics to impose our preferences on people who's lives are much, much different." This idea that each economy is driven by      each individual's personal utility has opened my eyes to a deeper understanding of each economy.