Positive and Negative Externalities

After learning so much about externalities in class lately, I've realized that probably the majority of things we do and choices we make can be classified as either a positive or negative externality. I've even started noticing how my actions could be categorized and I've become more conscious of what I do and how it affects others. The other day, for example, I took my dog for a walk. While on the walk, my dog had to go to the bathroom and I cleaned up after him so I wouldn't step in it. This served as a positive externality because after I cleaned up after my dog, no one else had to run the risk of stepping in it or even smelling it when they passed that spot either, so what I did to help myself helped others as well. On the opposite end, I was guilty of producing a negative externality while driving to dance last week. I had to have my hair up in a tight bun for the ballet class I was going to, and I hadn't had time to do my hair before I left my house, so I decided to do it in the car. So, I worked on my hair at stoplights, and therefore wasn't paying complete attention when the light turned green. Since it took me a few moments longer to notice when the light changed, the cars behind me had to wait until I saw the light and started accelerating. Although it was beneficial to me to get my hair done, it was inconvenient for the cars who were forced to wait for me. Thinking about this now, I feel really bad for creating a negative externality like that. Learning about an economic concept like that has made me give more consideration to my actions and try harder to not inconvenience others with my own actions.

Supply and Demand

This week in economics, we've been focusing on the concept of supply and demand. The supply and demand different goods and services are constantly changing. Ever since we started learning about supply and demand, I've been more aware of the prevalent supply and demand changes all around me. For instance, there are two McDonald's locations close to my house. I noticed that one of the McDonald's increased the price of their ice cream cones, while the other McDonald's maintained their price of ice cream cones, which was lower than the new price of the first McDonald's. The two McDonald's locations act as substitutes, and because the price of the ice cream cones at the first McDonald's increased, the demand for those ice cream cones decreased, and my family (and probably other people) used the substitute of the other McDonald's, so the demand for their ice cream cones increased. I also observed a shift in the supply of a product recently. A lot of Conant students are part of the fan section at sporting events, called the "Cougar Crazies" and every year, the leaders of the Cougar Crazies order t-shirts for anybody who says they want one. This year, the leaders ordered a set amount of personally designed t-shirts for those of us in the Cougar Crazies. However, after the t-shirts arrived and we actually got them, a lot more students went to the leaders and said that they wanted shirts too. The leaders hadn't accounted for extra people who may want shirts, so their expectations were lower than the outcome. Therefore, they had more shirts made, and the supply of those t-shirts increased. These were just two simple examples of changes in supply and demand, but they show how many things that we see everyday can relate to economics.

President Obama's Position on Syria

On Tuesday, September 10th, 2013, President Barack Obama delivered a fifteen-minute, nationally televised speech, in which he stated his position on the crisis in Syria. In short, he has made the decision that the United States is going to respond to the attacks in Syria with a "targeted military strike" in an effort to end their use of chemical weapons. While many US citizens are skeptical about the President's plan, I happen to agree with it. Throughout his speech, he continuously referred to the idea of the US helping out other countries, even if it's not necessary. A lot of people are upset over that very idea because they feel that this isn't our country's place to get involved. I can see why they would think that we shouldn't get involved in something that doesn't concern us, but that's just it; it should concern us. Anytime there's something we can do to help others, no matter what country they're from, we should do it. I want peace just as much, if not more, than the next person, but I don't think it would be right to ignore a problem that we're aware of. For as much pride and integrity as our nation has, I think it's almost expected for us to step up and help those less fortunate than us. We can't just sit back and let innocent people continue to be tortured and killed by gas and other chemicals. President Obama is right; we need to at least try to help Syria because, even though we live in different countries, we all live in the same world, and we all want to live healthy and happy lives.

Opportunity Cost In Everyday Life

Everyday we are forced to make decisions and deal with opportunity cost, which is what must be sacrificed in order to get what we want. Whether it's a big, important decision or a small one, we are constantly faced with situations in which we have to choose one option. Earlier today I was driving to school when I realized that I had forgotten my parking pass at home. The parking spots in second lot usually fill up pretty early in the morning so I knew that I couldn't park there, which meant I had two options. I could either turn around and drive back home to get my pass, or I could go to school without it and risk getting a parking ticket. After weighing the options, I eventually decided to turn around and go home to get my pass. Even though it cost me extra time to drive home and then back to school, it saved me from having to pay a fine for parking without a pass and saving the money was ultimately my biggest priority in that situation. I had to make the same type of decision earlier this week when my dance teacher got sick and asked me if I could substitute teach for her classes for four hours. This was my only week off of dance and I had a lot of homework that night so I was tempted to ask someone else to take over, but she also said she would pay me sixty dollars for subbing. When it came down to it, I decided to teach the classes, do my homework when I got home, and sacrifice some of my sleep for that night. Even though that wasn't what I really wanted to, the sixty dollars I got from teaching was more important to me than my sleep. These are the kinds of choices I make on a daily basis. Things like opportunity cost and making economic decisions show how prevalent economics is in our everyday lives.