Blog 7: Moneyball

I always thought the economy was a structured system that involved lots of math with people in suits using their calculators to understand and improve the economy. However, the more I actually pay attention to what is being said by the adults around me, I realize that I actually have no idea what the crud is going on. For example, If someone asked me to describe how the stock market worked I think I would say "People invest. Stock goes up and down. Uh...other stuff happens. Some more stuff." and then run away to avoid talking more about the subject. So it's safe to say I'm not a expert at the economy. But reading this book, the Economix, did help clear a few things for me. I knew Adam Smith was the guy who advocated for the free market approach but I never learned, as the author points out on pages 25-28, that he also argued for government action against monopolies. He understood that without regulations, companies could extort more money out of the population due to ultimate control over a certain product or good. He also comprehended that economy is based on the people, not just numbers, and that a good economy means that relatively everyone is doing well, not just the business moguls and stockholders.  Therefore, Smith was not a 100% Laissez-Faire but more of a mix of mercantilism and free market which makes sense because a system that depends on the actions of the people is due to experience random fluxes in the economy. We're not exactly a predictable group of people.

So that's one of the things I learned from reading this book. Another thing, was that Thomas Malthus kind of seems like a jerk. He argued against giving to charity, adopted a belief that served to blame the poor, and believed that war and disease helped keep the population in check (although since there are no direct quotes here I can't say for certainty if he, Malthus, was stating it as a fact or as an advocation). Also, if he's all for keeping the population down, then why go against birth control? War is ok but god forbid if someone uses birth control to avoid a 13th pregnancy. How can war or disease be seen as a better alternative? How??? Anyway - ahem - that's my two cents. The structure of this book is definitely better than reading a textbook and I like how the author interjects the dry parts with humor. Makes it easier to avoid falling asleep and all.