Quelques perles de basic science in economics!

Greg Mankiw a reçu ce mail d'un certain Georges Boronow Assistant Professor
à Nyack College:

Ten Key Principles in Economics

Everything has a cost. There is no free lunch. There is always a trade-off.

Cost is what you give up to get something. In particular, opportunity cost is cost of the tradeoff.

One More. Rational people make decisions on the basis of the cost of one more unit (of consumption, of investment, of labor hour, etc.).

iNcentives work. People respond to incentives.

Open for trade. Trade can make all parties better off.

Markets Rock! Usually, markets are the best way to allocate scarce resources between producers and consumers.

Intervention in free markets is sometimes needed. (But watch out for the law of unintended effects!)

Concentrate on productivity. A country’s standard of living depends on how productive its economy is.

Sloshing in money leads to higher prices. Inflation is caused by excessive money supply.

!! Caution: In the short run, falling prices may lead to unemployment, and rising employment may lead to inflation.

Je suggère de confier ce petit poème à nos énarques en fin de cursus afin qu'ils puissent se rendre compte combien tout ce qui leur a été enseigné est illusoire! Je suggère aussi qu'il soit adressé en format poche plastifié à nos politiques avant chaque séance où une décision budgétaire est prise, j'allais dire entérinée car les coûts des décisions publiques sont rarement connus a priori mais découverts (avec stupeur parfois) a posteriori.