Scott Stewart, epilogue, question 6

in this final reading, the author talked about how economics is just a tool, and we have to decide how we are going to use it. in europe they have a more cushy system, but less inovation. there are ups and downs to having more and less regulation. in my opinion, there needs to be a healthy balance between competition and simply helping people. those people under the streets in chicago are not bad people, and dont deserve to have to live like that, however if we aimply put them into a mansion with a comfortable lifestyle everyone would become homeless to try and get to live that lifestyle.

Peter Webster Epilogue Question 6

I found it interesting how much change could happen if our economy becomes more productive. We will continue to create new things that make us much more productive and make things easier and more cheaply. That will allow us to work on other things with the time that we save, and be more productive in multiple things. "Americans are richer than most of the developed world; we also work harder, take less vacation, and retire later"(Wheelan 318). So maybe this will change, and we will become the most developed world, but we take more vacation, retire sooner, and work less.

Scott Stewart, epilogue, question 6

in this final reading, the author talked about how economics is just a tool, and we have to decide how we are going to use it. in europe they have a more cushy system, but less inovation. there are ups and downs to having more and less regulation. in my opinion, there needs to be a healthy balance between competition and simply helping people. those people under the streets in chicago are not bad people, and dont deserve to have to live like that, however if we aimply put them into a mansion with a comfortable lifestyle everyone would become homeless to try and get to live that lifestyle.

Miriam Scheel, Epilogue, Question 2

As many have mentioned before, the epilogue ties all the different themes of the book together and draws a conclusion about the future: What are we making of our future with all the knowledge that we have? One aspect at which he looks is education. Education has been in the past and will always be a big question since so much of the future depends on how we raise the future generations. One part of the question is surely to determine what a good education is, but many psychologists are working on the specific aspects of the ideal education that permits a good development. The other more related part of the question is how to get people to  ensure this education. This is something that we will have to work on: how do we get teachers to do the best for their students when measuring what "the best" is, is almost impossible.

Julia Carle, Epilogue, Question #7

In the epilogue of Naked Economics, Wheelan taught me how, economically speaking, our future will look like. The very detailed seven questions that Wheelan answered about what life will be like in 2050 were very crazy to think about. Wheelan brought up how the U.S. could change their ways in order for the U.S. to stop being the largest debtor in the world. That's another thing I learned, the U.S. must pay for our government, pays the interest we've added up over the years on bills, and pay for new expenses involved with the elderly. That is a lot of paying in which will become very difficult for the U.S. I always never quite understood why we were in so much debt and why we haven't paid it off, but now I have a much better understanding of government debt and how it works.

Jonathan Webb, Epilogue, Question 2

Just thinking about the future is exciting but scary at the same time. Obviously this chapter was about our future and the 7 questions that we should ask ourselves. Defenitly all these issues will have an effect on my life, like he said, it's the decisions that we make now that will affect our future. One of the seven questions, do we really have monetary policy figured out, made me think how that can indirectly or directly Affect me. He even says, we thought that we had tamed  the business cycle but we haven't. And at the end he ask the question, " how do we allow the market to punish wrongdoers without sending all of us spilling down the hill?". I think that's a huge part of mine and others future. Will we have figured out the business cycle? Or will we even still have the monetary policy running? One question I do think he could've put in there is, what will be countries borders in 2050, the same or comeplety different because of wars or government fall? I think that's a big factor we should consider about our future.

Darby Quast, Epilogue, Question 7

Before reading this book or taking this class, I had never really thought about economics.  I knew it had something to do with the stock market and was fought over during the presidential elections.  Now, like Wheelan stated, I understand that it can be used as a tool, and if used correctly, can solve many of our worlds greatest issues.  I would have never thought that environmental issues, or the extinction of African Tigers could be solved using economics.  Also something like poverty, a seemingly impossible problem to fix can be fixed, or lessened by simple economic policy.  It seems as though people today are very ignorant when it comes to these topics and I realize now the importance of having a basic understanding.  The reason why things aren't being fixed is because of this lack of understanding and that is something that I think needs to be changed.

Harris worthman, epilogue, Question 6

While I was reading the epilogue I was finding it more and more difficult to focus. There was a passage in the first paragraph that would not cease to expell itself from my hippocampus. The passage basically stated that in order to achieve what we want, we have to figure out what we want first. So... stupidly obvious, which is why it stuck in my head like one direction's incredible music. I wondered why he decided to put such "fluff" in the final pages of his novel. He mentioned that the laws of physics weren't broken when we went to the moon. We just needed to allocate a bit of the resources around our feet; a "choice" to go to the moon. But do we choose to go into a recession? No. So why does it happen? Because the U.S. doesn't know what it wants? Of course not. Charles Wheelan was wrong. You can't make a choice you're not capable of making. We could have found out that space is far more dangerous than we hoped. Than we wouldn't have ever sent man to the moon. Economics is far more unpredictable than physics and if Wheelan thinks he can hint at that in such a vague way and manipulate how his point is stated then he has failed on me. There is no algorithm of formulas that we can use to solve all the ethical and human nature related problems that hinder so many governments from being the most effective they can be. Human nature isn't as predictable as gravity. Humans act irrationally and impulsively while the laws of physics never change.

Gunnar Nelson, Epilogue, Question #1

In the epilogue of Naked Economics, Wheelan describes the direct correlation between our generation and the future of the nations economic growth. Wheelan describes the Economy as a tool, which can be compared to physics. Physics made it a possibility for us to explore the moon, however it was not the driving force. In the same way Economics is used as a tool for us to use, which can either lead to a better understanding, and success, or lead to misfortunes- depending on how we use the tool. Ultimately we have the decision on how we should use the tool.

This directly correlates to my life. Later in the epilogue, Wheelan states that "Markets don't solve social problems on their own. But if we design solutions with the proper incentives, it feels a lor more like rowing downstream." In summary, anything can happen with the correct incentives. It is up to our generation to use the tool of economics as properly as we can. We never know what will happen, what the living conditions will be like, how international issues are, however with the proper incentives, we can be sure that we can face whatever occurs, and bounce back with strength. 

Max Hobrough, epilogue, question 6

When I was reading the section on if we will have strip malls in 2050 and I could clearly see that everywhere I look as the economy is turning around the cost of things doesn't matter as much. Even right by my house they were planning on building a strip mall by my house but they had to cancel their plans and sell the land because everyone preferred downtown Stillwater with the specialty shops. I knew this because my mom dealt with these people because they were going to have a bunch of ATM's there. This is just very interesting to me because people's perspectives of money change so much when they have more money. So in 2050 the quality of life seems to be raised quite a bit higher and so then there is more wealth in every class of people. Due to the rise of the economy after time these visual preferences on how the product looks rather than functions will be a much higher priority. The picture may be portrayed as being small but if this does happen then there could potentially be a trickle down effect that could help out a lot, due to the flow of currency and people's willingness to give to charities. Overall this book added new ideas to my knowledge and also strengthened them to comprehend and think differently about situations that I would previously not think as deep about. 

Zach Du, Epilogue, Question 6

In the epilogue, Wheelan proposes seven questions about economy for us to think about. The question "How many minutes of work will a loaf of bread cost?" attracted my attention. "Economc theory predicts that as our wages go up, we will work longer hours—up to a point, and then we will begin to work less. Time becomes more important than money. Economists just aren't quite sure where that curve starts to bend backward, or how sharply it bends" (318). Take United States as an example: it's one of the richest country in world, however people here are also work twice as hard than other countries. If the trend continues, people would work longer and longer in the future, and at one certain point, they would stop. "Productivity growth gives us choices. We can continue to work the same amount while producing more. Or we can produce the same amount by work less. Or we can strike some balance" (318). Make a long story short, it's our own responsibility for choosing the right amount of work we do everyday, so start to make wise decisions.

Madison Webster, Epilogue, Question 2/6

Like most people have mentioned, the Epilogue does a good job wrapping up the book. It reveals that many of the topics Wheelan discussed throughout the different chapters really does relate to our lives. Some of the information didn't seem important at the time but I feel as if Economics all ties together, and a topic may not be so important when standing alone but is very useful when woven with multiple points of emphasis.

I thought the portion titled "In forty years, will "African Tigers" refer to wildlife or development sucess stories?". This section was particularly interesting because it was really clear the the future is a mystery. We can predict and suggest ideas as to what will happen, but nobody knows. Wheelan gives many examples in the form of questions as to what economic issues could be tied in to affect the future. Monetary distribution, technology, human capital and market economy were all mentioned. I guess I never thought about the economics in the future. I will hopefully live on longer and I will be needing to think about these concepts more regularly to understand a clear image of what is happening in the world around me. I am glad that this book has given me a firm base of economics.

Taylor Bye, Epilogue, Question #6

After reading this book and the epilogue especially, I have truly begun to see how economics is woven through our every day lives. I like the sentence, "In the end, though, it is just a set of tools." A very important set of tools but there you go. And more importantly, this set of tools is used by almost every person at almost every moment of almost every day. Even if we are not the action, we get the reaction.

Reading through the questions of this epilogue just re-cemented the lessons I've learned about the importance of economics and how to apply it in my life. For example, "Will we use the market in imaginative ways to solve social problems?" was one section that particularly hit me again. The very fact that incentives play such a big role in our society and what people decide to do is a. true and b. vastly overlooked. I certainly didn't think incentives were that big of a deal, until I started reading about the Orphan Drug Act. Just one bill passed, taxing pollution, and society is a more environmentally clean place is astonishing. This is also a bit of a life lesson in soul searching: really looking at the decisions we make in life and asking why we make them. What are we doing and why we are doing it?

This epilogue really just highlighted everything that economics plays a part in, otherwise known as our whole lives, and I'm so glad to have read it and gain the knowledge needed to lead a good, economically sound life.

Olivia Barr, Epilogue, Question 2

While reading this book throughout the duration of the semester, there have been some chapters which highlighted topic that clearly affected my life, and others that didn't have clear connections what so ever. Through reading the epilogue, the topics that seemed very distant from my own life, and therefore having any affect on it, have become much more clear. Through reading the last seven questions of the book, all of the things that were less clear began to culminate in my mind to help me realize that no matter the physical distance, the economic circumstances of every country have some affect on my life, no matter the scale or directness of the affect. For example, it might seem like a waste of time for someone in America to concern themselves with the economic situation in Burkina Faso (or any other country with a bad economy), but if Burkina Faso continues to struggle they may look to the United States for aid, which in and of itself can contribute to the National Debt, and aside from that we begin to question if we will ever reform our methods of providing aid to foreign countries so that it can be more beneficial in the long term for the development of the country in need, etc. These connections are not limited to foreign involvement, but it is becoming more and more clear that there will need to be some type of reform in politics so that people seeking office with hopes of combating the national debt will not be laughed off of the stage as soon they say they want to raise taxes. All in all, studying economics might make an individuals thought process more complex, and sometimes provide a jaded view of the world, but it helps to create people who are willing to look at the hard questions and see that hard questions often have difficult answers, and sometimes it takes a long time to fix them; additionally, studying economics helps to develop citizens who are able to look through media slants and find that sometimes raising taxes, or interest rates is the most logical thing to do, despite the fact that they might seem like a bad thing from the surface.

Maddie Binning, Epilogue, Question #2

The issues presented in the epilogue of course affect the state of our country now and in the future. This section brought up not only the question of how to effectively put economic ideals into use, but also how to incorporate humanity and consideration for human life into the equation. The importance of these questions are monumental in a national and global sense. Should the US continue to burrow into debt without making the economic decisions needed to sustain the country, we as a generation could face a daunting struggle. If we decide as citizens of the human race to continue allowing the wealth gap to grow and poverty to thrive, we've ignored significant portions of human beings who need support. The ethical and practical implications are essential to our futures which is why it is important to consider them now.

Griffin Pontius epilogue, question 6

Durning the epilogue, Wheelan points out that humans are in fact, lazy.  As much of a shock that is to all of us, Wheelan uses an example that caught my attention.  While he discusses the question, "Will we use the market in imaginatative ways to solve social problems?" Perhaps 'lazy' is the wrong word, a more appropriate (and econmic) title would be, there is less of an incentive to help the world for lack of a monetary benefit.  Anyhow, Wheelan in answering this question almost rants about issues in the world and how they could be solved; the problems remain unsolved because there is no incentive strong enough for us to fix the given issue. This passage stuck out because it seems like common sense that to me that we should all try to better the world in some way, yet a lot of the time, we do the oppisite.  We posese so much potential as a planet that isn't utilized because of lack of incentive, or return in the investment.  It's a sort of dull thought that is almost frustrating.

Nathalie Heidema, Epilogue

Economics uses many tools to make our lives better. To make the best out of these tools, we must set our priorities, determine what trade -offs we are willing to make and what outcomes we are willing to accept. The future is full of uncertainty but we must start and do things now to make it better. The environment is one thing. If we get the incentives right a lot could be done well. We should impose taxes on on CO2 emissions and encourage green technology. That means that if we want innovation we need human capital and that's when education plays its role. Of course, it would be a waste to use just half of your work force and so all countries should promote gender equality.. We could go so on for a long time. In a nutshell, economics is (extremely) necessary because it is about everything - our social lives, wealth, poverty, gender relations, science, environment, politics, work, trade, travel, issue like discrimination or diseases.. It offers many solutions (not always moral), it help a lot (but can also harm too- especially with wrong incentives) and it can create a better place to live for us. Simply, economics is life (so learn it well!).

Nick Terlizzi, Epilogue, question 3

Wheelan closes the book with some questions for our future economy and lifestyle. Wheelan brings up how the U.S. is the worlds largest debtor and how "'over borrowing always ends badly, whether for an individual, a company, or a country'"(324). He mentions how three parties have borrowed heavily: consumers, Finacial firms, and the US government and the first two have paid the price but the US government still is yet to pay the price. What would our future look like if the US had to pay the price for its debt? Overall Wheelan does a remarkable job on expressing his concerns for the US education school systems,  hard working Americans, and the US government. At the end of reading naked economics I have gained the knowledge to the "big ideas" of Econ, Wheelan says now "they begin to show up everywhere"(325).

Jona Bakke, Epilogue, Question #6

A specific passage in the Epilogue that got me thinking is when Wheelan is discussing how many minutes of work a loaf of bread will cost in 2050. He discusses the probable continual increase in productivity and then asks, "How rich is rich enough?"

Is there a point when Americans will become satisfied with the state of our nation's wealth and decide to work less? The economic theory states that to a certain point people will work more as wages go up, and then they will work less and value time more than money. This decrease in work would not necessarily change how much we produce. With continually increasing productivity, we can either decide to work the same amount and produce more or work less and produce the same amount.

It seems that Americans would have differing opinions in 2050 as to which of these options is chosen; some may choose to work the same amount while others think we should all work less. This is a very intriguing question and it will be interesting to see what really happens in 2050.

Sophie Gunderson, Epilogue, Question 3

This final addition to Naked Economics focused on what the world will be like in 2050. Who ever knows what the world will be like 5, 10, or 50 years from now? Charles Wheelan helps by asking questions and proposes different possible answers along with additional questions raised from the original question. He implies that the future is obviously very unknown. We have the tools (economics) to fix many problems and implement many different probable solutions but will we? Will we focus purely on getting richer and more productive or will that obsession cease and instead we spend more time in parks listening to music? Will the developing countries develop into economic powerhouses or will they continue to trickle along like they have through the past decades? Lastly, will America's current approach on markets and the economy work the next 50 years effectively? Overall, it's a bit frightening that we don't know what the world will look like in 50 years yet also empowering because we have to tools and we have to choice to fix the problems, we just have to figure out how. 

Angela Scharf, Epilogue, Q.4

     What I gained from the epilogue is that economics and productivity in all its power is worth nothing if we don't use it to its full potential. In the markets we've established that the most effective way to get something done is to give people incentives to be productive, but this can also have a negative effect on things such as social problems and ethics. The example used in the book regarded the topic of a serious illness that were too rare to be profitable by drug companies if they chose to research them. Technology today, especially in America, is bountiful yet we only choose to help if we get to benefit. Although this is not necessarily the case in all situations, and striving for benefits is not always detrimental, we need to shift incentives so that people will want to be more productive (and also profit) from things that actually matter, things like education and medical research.

Rita Hammer, Epilogue, Question 3

The end of the Epilogue struck me the most as it relates to my future significantly. Wheelan lists off the multiple things that have to be done in our country, or things could end badly. As the younger generation we are outnumbered by the older, meaning there are less people to contribute to increased productivity and more people who play bingo in the nursing home (on the tax payers dime). In addition to paying for the aging population, we must "pay for whatever government we choose to have, which we aren't doing now" and "pay the interest we've accumulated on past bills." Our country has an abundance of debt that needs to be payed off before our "over borrowing..ends badly, whether for an individual, a company, or a country." As weird as it sounds, I will be alive in 2050. I'll only be 54! I won't even be close to playing bingo (I hope). Instead, i'll most likely still be contributing to society in some way or other. It's alarming that it is our generation to whom our parents (in the nursing home) and our children will be counting on to come up with solutions to fix these major issues. Overall, it creates incentive to work hard and develop leadership skills so that we can make critical changes.

Scott Stewart,Chapter 12, Question 6

A large part of this chapter was on the fear of outsourcing jobs. People are afraid that the outsourcing of jobs is harmful to the economy. However, on the whole, outsourcing jobs is good. more jobs are created and the economy grows! So the classic line from southpark of "they took 'r jobs!" should be ammended to say: "they took 'r jobs, whuch caused the economy to grow and created more better jobs and made us richer on the whole"

Chapter 12 Q-7

By reading this chapter Wheelan opens my eyes to the importance of specialization. Specialization is what makes countries productive, richer, and opens up trade. Wheelan also says countries can "consume more by specialization at what they do best and then trading"(274). Wheelan also opens up the idea of how in globalization there will be losers. People in the US will lose jobs because people can do the same thing for cheaper in foreign countries. Although there are losers, in the long run economies grow and absorb displaced workers.

Kiera Ziegler, Chapter 12, Question 2

Trade and tariffs accept my everyday life more then I knew. He uses the example of oranges. In Brazil the conditions are perfect to grow oranges, however the government puts a tariff on them to protect American orange farmers. This makes the price of the orange juices about 30 cents more expensive. Due to this not being a tax on the good we as consumers don't know about this price increase. For me as a consumer I find this frustrating, it causes me to question what others good are more expensive because the government wants to protect industries in the United States. The government isn't forcing them to improve the quality of their products or find cheaper more efficient ways to run their company. This, in the long run, is more detrimental then helpful.

Peter Webster Chapter 12 Q 6

It is interesting how trade is so good for some people, but bad for others. Wheelan says, "Trade makes the most efficient use of the world's scarce resources." Then the next line he says, "Trade creates losers." It is good for everyone because people on opposite sides of the earth get new ideas, better things, and higher quality things. In lower class countries work can be one dollar an hour as opposed to over in the US where the minimum wage is much higher than that. This is good and bad. It's good because the world gets things for a low price, and they can get a lot of things. It is bad because people like the couple at the Levi's plant we saw in class lose their job because they are getting paid 10 times as much as those in poor countries who are doing just as efficient work. Some of those people never get another job, some get better jobs than before. But overall trade is good for everyone.

Angela Scharf, Chapter 12, Q.3

In our lifetime we will have to continue the debate of globalization. People today tend to make a point about buying strictly "American made products" or specifically directing their money to American companies and goods which is fine, but what they fail to realize is that trading with other countries can prove to be just as beneficial if not more. Trading internationally can free up time for the American workers and direct them to jobs that they're better at. The biggest problem with globalization today is that people don't realize that giving jobs to workers in other countries is not a bad thing. These people are only looking at the short run sting of unemployment. Yet they don't realize that in the future the unemployed Americans can be directed to a more fitting job through comparative advantage therefore increasing overall productivity and making the US (and other countries) richer. Although there may be unintended consequences to an interdependent economy, the alternative is Protectionism which only slows economic growth and maximizes opportunity costs.

Julia Carle, Chapter 12, Question #7

After reading chapter twelve, I learned the pros and cons of protectionism and how it can be beneficial in the short run, but in the long run destructive towards the economy. I always wondered before reading this chapter whether foreign trading with countries such as China for goods was a bad way to run things. My thinking was that if all these Americans can buy a Chinese made pack of pencils for $1.00 versus the American made pack for $2.99, the person would most likely choose the Chinese made pack, which means that Chinese goods are more prosperous than American goods, meaning that Americans will lose jobs from lack of factory's prosperity. This concept of protectionism was new to me, but now I realize there really is no good simple solution. If you decide to save American jobs by. Cutting off trade from foreign countries such as China, you run the risk of destroying the economy eventually. And trading a ton with these foreign countries will put many Americans out of work. Before reading this chapter, I didn't quite realize how complex the conflict is.

Zach Du, Chapter 12, Question 6

The part in Chapter 12 which talks about how trade makes us richer really caught my attention. Wheelan uses a fallacy of Abraham Lincoln to start off the topic: "It seems to me that if we buy the tails from England, then we've got the rails and they've got the money. But if we build the rails here, we've got our rails and we've got our money" (273). However, Mr. Lincoln made some flaws in his statements. If I want to buy vegetables from the farmer, then I will pay the money and get my vegetables in return, everybody benefits; whereas, I buy the seed and grow the vegetable by myself, which would takes so much longer to get what I need, even if I keep the money. In conclusion, "We trade with others because it frees up time and resources to do things that we are better at" (274).

Elena Gutierrez, Chapter 12, Question 6

Gunnar Nelson, Chapter 12, Question #6

In chapter 12 of Naked Economics, a particular passage about economics and environmental health struck me as interesting. Before, I would not associate the two notions as being synnonymous. I had the "typical understanding" of a growing Economy requiring the increase in waste. As Wheelan points out that "the very act of staying alive requires that we produce waste." I always thought that the way to boost environmental health would be to stifle industrial production and consumption, which would hurt the economy significantly. However, Wheelan proves me wrong. In the short run, if we produce more, we will pollute more as well. But as we get richer, we will pay more attention to the environment. For an example, Wheelan uses data from London: " the city's current air quality is better than at any time since 1585." This is shocking, who would have guessed... as industrialization continues to increase, so does the care in the environment. I also contend that we as a nation are fortunate to have the ability to even worry about the environment.

Darby Quast, Chapter 12, Question 6

A quote that stood out to me while reading chapter 6 was, "Productivity is what makes us rich.  Specialization is what makes us productive.  Trade allows us to specialize." (275)  I thought that this quote did a really good job of explaining the concepts of absolute advantage and comparative advantage.  When the factors of opportunity cost are not considered, there would be no reason for a country like the United States to trade with Bangladesh.  We can make t shirts just as well, if not better than they can.  Logically the United States would not even bother trading and making them all themselves.  The issue with this is the same people that know how to make t shirts, also know how to create airplanes.  This is why Tiger Woods doesn't do his own auto repairs, and why all of us don't own cows.  By being able to trade and have someone else do these things for us, we are allowed to use our time towards something we are better at and in the end have a more productive outcome.  This is why trade is so important because it increases the wealth and overall improves the quality of life for everyone involved.

Jonathan Webb, Chapter 13, Question 6

  Reading about geography really struck me. How basically 4 medicines were patented, because 9 of the 13 were US studies from Vietnam,  for tropical regions. I would think that that's where the main focus would be going to, tropical regions. But like he mentioned in the book, scientists go where the money is. And that's in developed countries. Thought that was a great idea by he British prime minister to change the insintives of making medicine. and defenitly should be followed by others to improve tropical areas of the world.

Madison Webster, Chapter 12, Question 6

I'm going to focus on the section titled "Trade is based on voluntary exchange." This part struck me as interesting because trade seems so awesome and enriching but it only succeeds if people choose to make is succeed. Wheelan talks about fast food restaurants because often times they succeed anywhere. Even when placed in places that are historic or not in the best condition, they still succeed because people choose to involve themselves with them through work or as a customer. It's crazy to think of the places where these modern restaurants are placed but overall, they make people richer through the jobs they create. We may not always want to see Starbucks sprawled throughout the world, but for people in poorer countries, they love to have work more accessible. Also, most people are willing to work for cheap because something is better than nothing.

Olivia Barr, Question 3, Chapter 12

This chapter left me a bit concerned for the future of the American economy because people are so often misled by logical fallacies that make economic globalization seem a net negative, while in reality it is good for people both within the United States, and abroad. Globalization gets a bad reputation within the eyes of people who do not have a basic understanding of economics, or buy into media slants on the negativity of globalization which only adds fuel to the fire of economic ignorance. If this pattern continues, and finds its way into the platform of a president that is elected, then the American economy could be destroyed within a single term. In short, if people continue to overlook countries like India and China who suffered in closed economies, and have become major world economies in relatively short amounts of time after opening their economic boarders, then the American economy could easily regress beyond the level of the great recession.

Sophie Gunderson, Chapter 12, Question 2

After reading chapter 12 of Naked Economics, I have to admit that I am left a bit angered. Angered by the fact that many people in the world still strongly resist globalization and trade even through the pros have been shown to dramatically outweigh the cons. An example that Charles Wheelan used that was especially interesting and understandable involved the Mississippi River. Restricting trade around the world would be like restricting trade over the river. The people in the east would have to stop what they specialize in in order to make what those in the west do and visa versa. Long story short, it makes no sense and is very unwise to halt this trade. As time goes on and our ecomony, as well as the global economy, increases, trade should continue to increase also! Although there are some losers in the short run and possibly overall, there are many many more winners. I vote more trade and more random KFC's throughout the neighborhoods of the world because without it, we are less specialized, less productive, and less rich. 

Max Hobrough, Chapter12, question 7

In chapter 12 Wheelan discussed trade and how it can turn a one way deal into two way deal with hopefully both parties involved gaining from them. This topic expanded and depended my knowledge for the who world trade system and how it really works. When I got to the part in the chapter when he started to talk about that for something to be and effective trade it needs to be voluntary. A trade just will not work if it is only going to benefit one party and the other party is left unhappy and pissed off. Well from one rotton trade could possibly end a whole trading relationship. Also the whole concept of productivity and doing what you can do the best and most efficient is really interesting. There is always a cost to everything which trading helps with. The trading has groups create what they can create most efficiently so then they can rely on the other trading partner to do the same with whatever it is that is needed. This goes back to human capital and using our resources as best as we can so there can be maximum efficiency and we are not wasting a specific talent or skill set. This system if implemented could have the tools to lift all of Africa out of the dust by other wealthy nations trading products that we can not make. There just needs to be something that the African countries can do better than the rest of the world. I do believe if this can be found they can be raised from the dirt so many issues will then be solved.

Jona Bakke, Chapter 12, Question #6

A specific passage that stuck me as significant and particularly well argued is the point where Wheelan discusses the consequences of protectionism. While trade barriers do provide the immediate benefit of saving domestic jobs, they slow down the economy in the long run. Wheelan states that this happens because protectionism works against specialization. If one country is attempting to be self-sufficient, the people of that nation must perform every job instead of working specifically on what they are good (or least bad) at. Decreased specialization leads to decreased productivity, which leads to decreased overall wealth.

Wheelan also makes the point that in history nations have imposed trade blockades on their enemies in order to isolate them and make them worse off. And so, why would people prevent themselves from development and success by intentionally doing what nations have done to punish their enemies? Although protectionism may seem like a good way to secure jobs in the moment, it can have very negative long term costs, which I think Wheelan argues well.

Maddie Binning, Chapter 12, Question #6

The passage in this reading that struck me as sad and illuminating was the portion that discussed the protest of products created by children in sweatshops. While trying to make a statement of political and moral correctness, protestors contributed to the displacement of child workers to the street, worse jobs, or prostitution. This unfortunate situation shows the importance of informed activism. With the knowledge of opportunity cost, specialization is completely logical. With specialization comes trade and with that outsourcing. The benefits of globalization are fairly evident even if the research is limited. In any case, it just goes to show the importance of understanding economics and fighting for causes that you truly understand to be right.

Miriam Scheel, Chapter 12, Question 6

In this chapter one passage talked about a time Wheelan was the president of the Seminary Townhouse Association. About the same time as he was elected (even though he says that it was more of an appointment than an election) the CTA planned to modify one of their train stations which was close to his neighborhood. The plans were made to improve the accessibility of the trains for people with disabilities, but unfortunately they also would have increased the noise for his neighborhood because the station would have been moved closer. The association tried everything in their power to disrupt these plans even though they meant huge benefits for the disabled people and a smaller disadvantage for the house owners.
This whole situation reminded me of a problem our CFE group heard about in the multiple sclerosis center. Many of the members there had to be in motorized wheelchairs because of MS, and these wheelchairs needed a special transportation vehicle. The members told us that a law was passed that forbid the use of these vehicles after six o'clock; the reason for that was that they were very loud and people felt disrupted. For these people the law meant a little bit more quiet time for the people with multiple sclerosis it meant not to be able to do anything past six, not visit their families or go to concerts. Again one group benefits minimally and another is hurt hugely.
And even though that sounds unjust put in these words, at some point everyone is part of a small group that wants to benefit from the disadvantage of a large group or the other way around. And there isn't one easy answer that will satisfy everyones needs.

Elena Gutierrez, Chapter 13, Question 6

The introduction to this unit was kicked off with reasons why the global mark is growing, and the definition of globalization. Globalization is (put simply) the action that countries take to make their capital available world wide. Currently the global market is growing, because of an increase in globalization. Businesses located in various countries around the globe are opening up to trade with other countries, because of technological advances in communication between countries, and transportation between countries. After learning about globalization, it was nice to read chapter thirteen in Naked Economics, and get an idea of why globalization is so important for countries and their monetary wealth. 

In chapter thirteen Wheelan talks about countries that reach out and trade with other countries, and countries that "economically isolate" themselves. According to a researcher at Harvard Center For International Development, the countries that globalize typically had a 4.5% per capita annual increase. Non-globalizing countries or countries with "closed economies" had a 0.7% per capita annual increase. The difference between the economic growth in closed economies and open economies is surprising, and like my peers I had no idea how important it was for countries to export goods to other countries, and import goods from other counties. 

Rita Hammer, Chapter 12, Question 5

Overall, Wheelan emphasizes the importance of trade and what it does for an economy. Trade allows poor countries to slowly develop and become richer due to the fact that they "have access to markets in the developed world." I was surprised by the statistics he gave about Africa. After there was a law passed allowing countries in Africa to export goods to the United States with minimal tariffs countries such as Madagascar and Nigeria saw increases in exports from 120-1000 percent. Although people end up losing their jobs due to the competition created by trade, it makes the majority better off. Without trade we throw away a significant amount of potential that will contribute to the growth of not just our economy, but several others. It's controversial on whether trade is good or bad for the sake of people and their jobs; however, if everyone had the view of a protectionist we would be forever turning the specialization clock backward. Wheelan brought up the example of forbidding trade across the Mississippi River. By doing so, the majority of people would end up having to make things that they don't specialize in. "We would be denied superior products and forced to do jobs that we're not particularly good at." We can't possibly make enough goods in our country alone to fulfill the lifestyles we all live. If trade is allowing us to produce what we are good at producing, helping us grow as an economy, and satisfying our demand for goods and services then we shouldn't be doing anything other than trading.

Chapter 13 question 6

A driving force for productivity according to Wheelan is human capital. Despite how much human capital a person has their geographic locations can effect how they use their skills and assests. The man in the reading who worked hard built his own house and farmed his own food only made $40 the year of 2012 which was common where he was. Despite his human capital and productivity his geographic location offset any advantages he had. Geographic location can effect all different aspects of life.

Scott Stewart, Chapter 13, Question 6

Good Governance was a key point in this chapter. according to the author a study found that good governance led to economic growth, whereas corruption only stagnated it. In order for 3rd world countries to grow they MUST get rid of corruption wherever they find it. It only discourages foreign investment.
When looking at the world from a practical standpoint this actually makes a lot of sense. I, personally, would never want to invest into an area that has a corrupt government. It would be difficult to get anything done without bribing lots of different people. Because of this it would be too difficult to work in a corrupt environment, and not worth it in the short or long run.

Max Hobrough Chapter 13, Question 6

In this chapter starting on page 461Charles Wheelan brings up the Geographical location of the countries that struggle and how their climate can push a good long term economy away. It was very interesting to hear how he said that tropical weather is meant for vacation and not for long term stay. The idea of this is actually very true, even when I was in the Cayman Islands I could see this happening. The whole economy seemed to be built on tourism a lot like certain areas of Mexico, this economy could be closed up and shut down in one day if those tourists stop coming. This is the issue with these markets, they are set up for temporary sucess because nobody can stay there for a long period of time due to the way that there is not a good medical system. I have also noticed that when ever I go to a popular tourist city I never really ever see medical buildings or hospitals. This raises the issue on the conditions on how people are living, I saw this especially in Mexico. When I was in Capetown, South Africa it actually not just built on tourism but rather it actually had its own industries that could sustain the population of the people. So there needs to be a major investment in healthcare in these towns to make these economies more stable.

Kiera Ziegler Chapter 13, Question 6

 Wheelan listed characteristics characteristic that affect successful economies the one that struck me the most was how little natural resources matter. Many of the most sucessful economies do not have abundant natural resources. In fact some economist say having abundant natural resources may actually be detrimental to the countries economy. If counrty relies on that one resource such as oil for example and if the price drops the economy if brought down and affected. If the one good is doing well then their economy may be sucessful; however if that good is doing poorly so is the economy there.
     I also found it interesting that the government need to be involved but not too involved or restrictive. How is a government supposed to know if they are to involved or too little involved. I believe this is a constant challenge in our country. In general I think we are doing well but there are still disputes on whether the government is too involved with our lives or too little and I doubt  at some point everyone will agree.