Louis Theroux - Crime and Economics in Action
The Louis Theroux documentary on law and disorder in Johannesberg is a fantastic documentary to demonstrate just a few economic concepts to students as a christmas treat.
Before the lesson lead a discussion - ‘to what extent is policing a public good?’
Then another discussion leading from,‘to what extent do you think policing should be a public good, i.e. provided by governments?’
Then introduce or perhaps revise the concept of government failure and how governments may fail to provide policing to a desired quantity.
The programme demonstrates how there may be a demand for private police agencies run by the free market in South Africa, because the government fails to provide adequate policing to a desired quantity.
Other points for discussion included in the programme may include; income inequality, the costs of unemployment, external costs associated with slum housing. Also note other government failures the S.A. government are guilty of e.g. failure of information provision for AIDS HIV Virus.
A discussion on the paternal role of governments may also be considered.
The show also raises all sorts of other ethical debates which Louis questions. Try to avoid getting bogged down in these those, keep it to economics!
Marcus
My Domain?
The BBC’s technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones reports here on proposed changes to the internet domain registration system that are likely to swpan a new generation of popular internet addresses. This video clip could be a good resource when teaching students about the role of property rights in a market economy. If the reforms go through we might see another stampede of so-called cyber-squatters rushing to register some of the really popular domain names followed by a backlash as established online and bricks and mortar businesses look to protect their trademarked names by claiming that these domain names actually belong to them!
BBC: time to be put out to pasture?
I poke my head out from the burial ground that is Molière and Maupassant to defend “too high” wages once again. However this time, it’s the BBC stars who are under attack for being paid “above the market rate”, so I shall be less kiddie-gloved with these public sector servants.
Difficult Economics Concepts and Topics!
With the exams looming you may find that there are ideas, concepts or topics that, try as you might, you cannot quite nail! We will try to help you along using the blog. If you have a topic that you are finding especially difficult, post a suggestion here and we will try to produce a short revision note on it in good time - here is the first one on public and private goods - a common topic on the market failure papers for AS economics.
read more...»Pay as you Go - An inconvenient truth
Are public conveniences a merit good and should they be made available free at the point of use (or need!) or is a pay as you go scheme more efficient and equitable? In case you are thinking that I am taking the pxxs, it is worth considering whether local and central government should be devoting more resources to the improved provision of public toilets across the UK.
read more...»Protecting the Natural Health Service
“Under siege from climate change, development, pollution and aggressive new farming methods, the country’s biodiversity is already significantly less rich than it was 50 years ago.” The Independent continues to promote it’s environmental agenda today with a striking front cover and leading article on the threats to the UK’s natural habitat and heritage. There is a strong economic and social case for a holistic approach to protecting and improving our natural resource base including paying farmers an income for their environmental husbandry and stewardship.
read more...»Flood defences, cost benefit and opportunity cost
Money spent on flood defences both here in the UK and overseas raises plenty of interesting questions relating to the use of cost benefit analysis and the opportunity cost of public money. What are the external costs and benefits of flood defence schemes? Are flood fences a pure public good? Who should pay for them? There have been several excellent news articles and video clips on this issue on the BBC web site in recent days - here is a selection
read more...»Firework free-rider
The son of an Indian billionaire held a wedding celebration near to my living quarters last weekend - the marquee itself must have cost upwards of £100,000 to hire - they are still dismantling it nearly a week on from the event. It was clearly a very exclusive event judging from the security in force on the night itself. But a very expensive fireworks display to round off the evening offered a classic example of a free-rider. For some the pyrotechnics were great fun, for others, unaware of the event and with animals disturbed by the size and scope of the display, there was little they could do to reject the effects and no way that appropriate compensation could be paid.
Free riding at breakfast
The lobby of the Novotel at Euston Square is a most inviting place for someone wanting to enjoy a relaxing coffee and a read of the morning papers. I got there just after 7am on Friday ahead of the ICT Conference at the British Library and ordered a coffee before checking through some emails. Little more than twenty minutes later, the team from Tutor2u were assembling for a healthy breakfast and I joined the queue with them fully expecting to be asked for my room number or perhaps checking in for a paid breakfast. Nothing happened .... I unwittingly became a free rider and happily raided the buffet for some fresh fruit, cold meats and an expresso.
Free riders are spongers who enjoy the fruit without paying a price. We were discussing this in our AS micro the other day. From using someone else’s Wi-Fi network to enjoying the environmental spillovers from another country reducing their CO2 emissions. The free-rider problem can be a cause of market failure for if too many people can get away without paying, the market may struggle to make a profit from the goods and services it supplies.
read more...»Mobile Shopping
mShopper is a new retail tool which allows consumers to make purchases via mobile phone.
Internet sales (’clicks’) are already challenging traditional retail (’bricks’) markets and the economics behind these changes is fascinating.
read more...»Public goods essays
Thanks for the ideas for essays on public goods. I settled on giving the students a choice of one from three…
read more...»Diginomics and an Essay Quandary
This week we have been looking at the difference between private and public goods as part of our exploration of market failure. The standard examples of public goods tend to crop up fairly regularly - national defence systems, the legal system, lighthouse protection, flood defence infrastructure etc. In some industries the distinction between private and public goods is becoming blurred and the rapid expansion of the digital economy has provided an interesting window for discussion on what constitutes a public good in our digital age. I cannot quite decide what essay title to set this week and I am hoping for some inspiration from Tutor2u bloggers!
read more...»
