This is the last chapter in the course. I hope you have enjoyed the course and are saddened to see it end. What concepts or theories did you find most interesting and/or useful? Is there an area where you changed your thinking?
Re this chapter: Which debate do you consider most important and interesting? Which side do you agree with? Why?
I really did enjoy this course and learned a lot. The most interesting thing that I learned was that there are so many intricate parts in our economy and everything works together to balance out. I also thought that it was interesting that the money supply in our country being controlled seems like the biggie when it comes to how the other factors change. I never really thought about it and was dealing with interest rates when I bought my house in January. I thought is was strange that the interest rates change kind of a lot and you have to lock in your rate if you get something good. I now understand why the rates change and who is behind the numbers changing. I also found it interesting to see that many of the things that politicians try to sell to people to close the gap between the wealthy and the poor in reality hurt the poor in the long run. This course has definitely changed the way I look at money. I look forward to learning about microeconomics next.
The debate I found most interesting was #2- “Should the Government Fight Recessions with Spending Hikes Rather than Tax Cuts?” The introduction to the debate showed how presidents on separate sides dealt with recessions in very different ways. Bush lowered taxes and Obama raised government spending. I agree more with the idea of raised government spending. When this happens, the GDP goes up more than when taxes are cut. The margin between the two numbers is pretty big. It was interesting to read about how the Great Recession could have been much worse without the stimulus package that Obama rolled out. I was an adult at this time and living on my own and the stimulus was a big help during that time. I was lucky during the recession though, because I was working as a bartender and had steady work and income through the whole recession.
My Journey into Macroeconomics 