Assignment
Question 1
Go to the Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom. Click on "Ranking" or "View the full list" to see the ranking of all of the countries in the world. Find the United States on the list and click to see more details. Click on "Government Spending" to answer the questions below.
a. Has government spending increased or decreased from the previous year?
b. How has that affected the overall "score" that the United States receives in the Index of Economic Freedom? Why do you think this is? Is increased government spending good or bad for the economy?
c. Draw a production possibilities curve with "Government Output" on one axis and "Consumer Goods" on the other axis, show the change you discuss above. Use one point on the curve to represent the current year (or the most recent year of the index if it hasn't been updated yet) and another point to represent the previous year. (Assume that the production possibilities did not shift from the previous year.)
Question 2
During the first 224 years of the United States history, the country accumulated $5.7 trillion in national debt. Now less than 16 years later, the country's debt is rapidly approaching $20 trillion. Visit the U.S. National Debt Clock, then click on the Treasury Department's Bureau of Public Debt FAQ link. What do you find interesting about the debt issues, and what if anything concerns you? What would you do with this knowledge if you were a member of Congress or the president of the United States?
Question 3
Visit the National Economic Accounts section of the Bureau of Economic Analysis website and open up the latest News Release on Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Investment is necessary to replace, modernize, and expand the nation's production capacity. Find the paragraph that deals with real nonresidential fixed investment.
a. What was the percentage change in nonresidential fixed investment during the previous two quarters?
b. What does this tell you about what is happening to the country's production possibilities curve?