So You Want To Know About Economics

*Economists are so particular about looking at every problem from all sides that it often feels like they never have a firm opinion on anything. That can get pretty frustrating when you are asking them for advice. Harry Truman, the 33rd President of the United States, once famously requested to be sent a ‘one-armed economist’, because he was so tired of hearing every economist say, ‘On the one hand, this,’ and ‘On the other hand, that’.

People who have studied the subject, on the other hand, will clear their throats, sit up straighter, and proceed to throw random words and phrases at you. ‘It’s about, you know, markets and things. Supply, demand, price elasticity, externalities, cost-benefit, scarcity, resources, exchange rates, maximising utility, protectionism, globalisation, and all of them, of course, ceteris paribus…’ When they finally catch your glassy-eyed expression, they will turn up their noses and say, ‘See, it’s Very Complicated. Difficult to explain. You wouldn’t understand it.’

Only a few people—a rare species but they do exist—will smile beatifically when you ask them these questions. They will lean forward in their seats, faces animated, eyes sparkling, and tell you that Economics is the most exciting subject in the world. Over the next half hour, pinning you to your seat with their fire-and-brimstone eyes, they will tell you why they think so. This is what they might say: