final exam

Question 1

John Rawls

Answer 1

veil of ignorance (attempt at neutrality) and accident of birth

Question 2

informs incentive

Answer 2

merit and meritocracy (american dream)

Question 3

merit and meritocracy (american dream)

Answer 3

fair equality of opportunity and gains that are distributed solely on your own work and quality (ies); socioeconomic mobility is equal for all at birth and advancements are due to extra effort and better character

Question 4

why would Utilitarianism be rejected?

Answer 4

1. Would / could not trade rights in exchange for socioeconomic gains
   2.Socioeconomic inequalities would be addressed using a different principle

Question 5

different principle

Answer 5

Any inequalities are arranged so that they are to the greatest benefit to the least of us.

Question 6

Libertarianism

Answer 6

Free market ideals; Ultimate freedom at all cost; don’t really care what happens to the people around you

Question 7

Mills and Bentham’s critique of Utilitarianism

Answer 7

a. Higher and lower values / utility can be measured
b.Using others as a ‘means’ to some ‘end’
c.Utilitarianism drowns out individual distinctions

Question 8

what are some examples of libertarianism?

Answer 8

~strong rights theory
~nozick: self ownership
~No paternalistic laws (seat belt laws etc…)
~You cannot legislate morality (abortion)
~Q: Is taxation and redistribution a form of stealing and slavery?

Question 9

Libertarianism

Answer 9

Individual rights dominate ideals of community obligation

Question 10

“I’m going to ask you about the instance where everyone raises their hands. And what that meant: what did it mean when he asked “how many of you are first born” and what did their response mean? Use the terms above”

Answer 10

He wanted to show that there is a bias, internationally, where 1st borns from genetic and biological sense get the “stuff” every birth after that gets less stuff. 1st borns get a family name, they get a self esteem boost that generates confidence in the rest of your life. the 1st born is showered with material goods that help them succeed in life.

Question 11

What
was the veil of ignorance about i.e., Why was it needed

Question 12

what does ‘accident of birth’ represent?

Question 13

What is
merit and why might it be important to a capitalist society?

Question 14

What is a libertarian and what are some good
and bad things about it?

Question 15

What is utilitarianism?

Question 16

What are some of its good and bad qualities?

Question 17

What does
the Difference Principle have to do with incentives, effort, and self-ownership/responsibility?

Question 18

When he
asked all the first-born students in the audience to raise their hands; What happened and what did that
represent?

Question 19

Which of the following statements explains why specialization increases economic productivity

Answer 19

Results in efficiency and higher quality

Question 20

Why does economics play an important role in our lives

Answer 20

Helps us understand the gas shortage of the 1970s

Question 21

People have diff skills talents interests so they will be better at some jobs than others” which job studies plants

Answer 21

botanist/botany

Question 22

What kind of econ system does the following statement describe: a country where the companies are owned by the government:

Answer 22

command economy

Question 23

Is the following statement t/f : the law of demand states that as price increase quantity of demand decreased and vise versa

Answer 23

true

Question 24

Is the following statement an example of supply, quantity of supply, law of supply, or nothing else : when labor goes up the wages go up

Answer 24

quantity of supply

Question 25

Is the following statement equilibrium price or quantity: oranges of quantity is quantity supplied at any given price

Answer 25

Equilibrium quantity

Question 26

How much meaning and correlation is there between the economy, stock markets, and politics?

Answer 26

Central banking is (arguably) separate; Stocks represent private firm (business) investment and performance which includes international monetary flows, keeping them rather well insulated from national conditions or local shocks; Economic health indicators do not include stock performance; If politics is influencing an economy or stock market(s) then it is a sign that the markets are not free and powers are not separated. This would also indicate improper signaling of preferences, which represents information asymmetry, preventing markets from optimizing ‘naturally’.

Question 27

How much meaning and correlation is there between the economy, stock markets, and politics?

Answer 27

Free-market governments, like our own, can and do take some actions to accelerate, maintain, and/or retrack economic trends but that does not mean that it has any measurable effect or works as planned. Stocks trend upwards over time (long-run and as designed), with only international crises causing noticeable short-term effects. There is more correlation between population growth, stock prices, and economic growth than almost any other metric.

Question 28

Do you know how international GDP, PPP, currency, and population relate per capita (head)?

Answer 28

Most of the migration in the world involves people who are moving from countries with relatively low GDP per capita to countries with relatively high GDP per capita. Economic growth leads to a rise in the standard of living.

Question 29

GDP, PPP, and Inflation: How do you calculate these things and why?

Answer 29

GDP: C + I + G + (X – M) or Consumption + Investment + Government Spending + Net Exports (X – M). PPP: cost of good x in currency 1 (P1) ÷ cost of good x in currency 2 (P2); PPP is a parity conversion over space (two countries) and considering differing currency values. Inflation: B – A ÷ A x 100 or the base year cost of specific good or service B minus the current price for same specific good or service A in another year or month (typically current year or month) divided by good A, times 100 (for the %); Inflation can be thought of as a parity conversion over time. These things help gauge an economy’s health, trajectory, and corresponding actions from a historical and international perspective, mitigating political and chronological valuation biases.