Questions from General Economics

Q: As unprecedented deficit figures flowed during the Great Recession, it is

As unprecedented deficit figures flowed during the Great Recession, it is hard to believe that for four years the federal budget was in surplus. After a one-year small budget surplus in 1969, it took...

Q: Perhaps the national debt and federal budget deficits are really not so

Perhaps the national debt and federal budget deficits are really not so large and threatening. For example, it can be argued that we should use real rather than nominal values to report the national d...

Q: On the tiny South Pacific island of Yap, life is easy

On the tiny South Pacific island of Yap, life is easy, but the currency is hard as a rock. For nearly 2,000 years, the Yapese has used large stone wheels to pay for major purchases, such as land, cano...

Q: The Federal Reserve is perhaps the most independent government agency in the

The Federal Reserve is perhaps the most independent government agency in the United States. Periodically, there is a resurgence of interest in curtailing its independence. Should the Fed be independen...

Q: The case of Lincoln Savings and Loan is a classic example of

The case of Lincoln Savings and Loan is a classic example of what went wrong during one of the worst financial crises in U.S. history prior to the banking crisis and Great Recession of 2007â...

Q: The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which is the Fed’s

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which is the Fed’s most powerful monetary policy-making group, and meets eight times a year at the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C. Often...

Q: The story of the worst collapse of the housing market and the

The story of the worst collapse of the housing market and the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression is filled with villains and no action hero to sweep down from the sky and save...

Q: Consider this statement: “Government involvement in markets is inherently inefficient

Consider this statement: “Government involvement in markets is inherently inefficient.” Do you agree or disagree? Explain.

Q: Monetarists and Keynesians still debate the causes of the Great Depression.

Monetarists and Keynesians still debate the causes of the Great Depression. Monetarists Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz, in their book A Monetary History of the United States, argued that the Great...

Q: Growing bananas for European markets was a multibillion dollar bright spot for

Growing bananas for European markets was a multibillion dollar bright spot for Latin America’s struggling economies. In fact, about half of this region’s banana exp...