Description

Social Issues in Economics will take economic theory and apply it to public policy decisions. Topics that will be covered in the course are; Economics of crime, Should we legalize drugs, is it more economical to imprison someone for life or seek the death penalty and did the Supreme Court decision in Roe v Wade (the legalization of abortion) contribute to the declining crime rate that began in the 90,s: The economics of unintended consequences will explore how well meaning public policy sometimes backfires and has the reverse effect; health economics will look at the rising cost of healthcare and the effect of Obamacare; Taxes and poverty, is there a natural rate of poverty (does minimum wage increases actually contribute to a higher rate) and does taxing the rich less actually help the economy; Energy & Environmental economics, what is the effect of global warming, or is it global cooling, and what is the best energy mix for the 21st century and lastly, who has it right, New Keynesians or Neo-Classicals.