by Alan Tonelson

[Boulder, CO: Westview, 2001]

The polemic nature of this book is apparent on the cover page. The title has a pointedly academic rhythm, but a populist tone. Its terse, ironic lead is followed by a much lengthier and more prosaic subtitle set off by the colon. The key word in the subtitle is the very colloquial verb "sinking." Moreover, the near-hysteria of the warning that is sounded like a tabloid headline may somewhat mask the oxymoron in the phrase "uncontrolled free trade.

In Tonelson’s view, economic globalization offers absolutely no advantages to the American economy or, more pointedly, to American workers. He argues that pervasive competition from much more poorly paid foreign workers has eroded the wages, working conditions, and living standards of American workers. Furthermore, he contends that globalization will perpetuate this trend until American workers have reached a sort of economic lowest common denominator–that is, until American workers are as bad off as the worst off workers in the world.

But there are two major flaws in Tonelson’s reasoning. First, he establishes a baseline by focusing on the increasingly terrible plight of unskilled American workers, in particular those without high school diplomas. No one would argue that such workers will not suffer greatly within an increasingly globalized economy. But certainly the solution to their dilemma is to educate them–to give them marketable skills–rather than to insist that international trade be constrained in a futile attempt to protect an increasingly anachronistic segment of our workforce. Continuing education is not a panacea. It will not provide a good life for all currently displaced workers, but it will begin to make them as a group more upwardly mobile, in much the same way that the consumerism of the 1950s gradually moved much of the American working class into the middle class.

Indeed, the economic protectionism of the 1960s and 1970s did little to protect the standard of living of unskilled American workers. For instance, as the wages of workers in the greatest American industry, auto manufacturing, rose dramatically, other American workers found it increasingly difficult to afford American cars. Even with extraordinarily high tariffs added to their sticker prices, cheaper imports actually helped to sustain the standard of living of more poorly paid workers by offering them the more affordable cars that the Big Three were not willing to provide. Anyone who remembers the early Subaru sub-compacts that had black rubberbands for door hinges knows that the initial appeal of many Japanese imports of that period was in their economy and not in their quality.

The second significant flaw in Tonelson’s argument is that he presents a slippery slope assertion that the economic exploitation of unskilled workers will eventually lead to the erosion of the wages, working conditions, and standards of living of even the most highly paid workers. He illustrates this point by describing the fluctuations in the labor needs of certain high-tech industries. But high-tech jobs are not necessarily highly skilled jobs. And, as anyone with technology stocks has learned, this segment of the economy is extremely volatile, meaning that not only investments, but also products and the workers who produce them can quite suddenly be reduced to inconsequence.

Again, some anecdotal, historical perspective may be revealing. A friend of mine paid almost $300 for one of the first digital watches. It was made of black plastic, had red blinking numbers, and was held onto his wrist by a surprisingly inflexible plastic band that almost instantly produced a wrist sweat. The watch told nothing but the time. Within two years, advancements in chip-manufacturing allowed General Mills to offer the same watch as a marketing gimmick in its boxes of Cheerios. Surely at least some of the workers who had manufactured those original watches were economically devastated by this change, but it is hard to argue that anything should have been done to "protect" the digital watch industry against the advancements made by the chip manufacturers.

In short, trying to provide everyone with the opportunity to prosper probably requires that some segments of the workforce will be regularly displaced and need to be retrained. Recognizing the inevitability of this suffering does not necessarily mean that we should be indifferent to it. Prosperity is a dynamic and not a static phenomenon, spiritually as well as materially. After World War II, when most of the industrial world was literally in ruins, America experienced a brief and extraordinary period of economic hegemony that has distorted our view of what prosperity means. In that period a "job for life" meant a position with AT&T, GE, or GM. But in previous historical epochs, it meant serfdom.

by Niall Ferguson

[New York: Basic, 2001]

Ferguson argues that an aggressive American economic imperialism will benefit not just the United States but also the international community. In effect, Ferguson is countering a long-popular position among economic and political thinkers. The conventional argument has been that empires–whether military, political, or economic in origin–inevitably collapse under the weight of the ever-widening demands that they impose on the imperial powers.

One of the most frequently cited and most recent illustrations of this argument has been found in the decline of Great Britain as a world power. According to the argument, the British empire, which had dominated much of the 18^th and 19^th centuries, declined because the demands of maintaining a worldwide empire finally overextended the resources of the small island nation. Thus, when forced to meet the aggression of Imperial and then Nazi Germany during the two World Wars, Great Britain was forced to exhaust the very economic and military resources that it desperately needed to maintain its empire.

Ferguson, however, turns this argument on itself, asserting that what undermined Great Britain’s position as a great power was not a lack of sufficient resources but a failure to employ those resources in a timely way–a failure to thwart in the early stages the threats posed by the Kaiser and the Fuhrer. In essence, the lack of sufficient military foresight and political will to create an army capable of withstanding Prussian militarism and the Nazi blitzkrieg doomed Great Britain to involvement in prolonged and titanic conflicts that bled the nation white, emptied its treasury, permanently disrupted its economy, and left it as a second- or third-rate power. In Ferguson’s view, this relatively sudden dissolution of the empire has not benefitted Great Britain, its former colonies, or the broader international community.

So in Ferguson’s view, the United States should respond aggressively to the current and future threats posed by rogue states and by movements of political and religious extremists. The dangers to us and to the world as a whole are greater if we hesitate to meet a threat than if we seem to overreact to some threats.

One does not need to have a deep paranoia about the so-called military-industrial complex to understand how this sort of argument can be used to justify an aggressive nationalism. Indeed, there is an inherent flaw in Ferguson’s argument that democratic ideals and its corollary, capitalism, are necessary to international progress and that democracies must be politically and militarily aggressive because they cannot mobilize quickly against threats to such progress. Ferguson does not account for the threat to such progress that may be posed by its supposed protectors. Perhaps empires collapse when the inevitable gap between the great ideals that drive them and the hard, pragmatic practices that sustain them becomes unbridgeable.

by Gurcharan Das

[New York: Knopf, 2001]

Das regrets that economic development has long lagged behind political developments in India and that the emphasis, both internally and internationally, has always been on the great constraints on India’s economic progress. He describes how the increasingly free-market economic reforms of the 1990s have finally demonstrated the nation’s great economic potential.

Even after the partition that created Pakistan and eventually Bangladesh as distinct nations of the south Asian subcontinent, India assumed political independence as one of the world’s largest and most diverse nations, and it has recently overtaken China as the world’s most populous nation. Less widely publicized has been its recent emergence as one of the major players in the digital revolution. Narayana Murthy may not have the name recognition of Bill Gates, but as CEO of Infosys, India’s largest software company, he has helped to drive economic growth at almost twice the annual rate of America’s long "bull market" economy of the 1990s.

India’s middle-class may include only about thirty percent of its total population of over a billion, but in sheer numbers, its middle class is almost as large as the total population of the United States. Given that two-thirds of the American economy is based on domestic consumption, one does not have to be an economist to understand that an economically vibrant India has domestic markets that can transform it into an international economic powerhouse. Das remains optimistic that the economic growth will shrink, rather than widen, the disparity between the prosperous and largely urban segments of the population and the great masses of rural poor.

by Elliott J. Gorn

[New York: Hill and Wang, 2001]

More recent generations may believe that Mother Jones is simply the quirky name of a rather radical environmentalist publication. But Mother Jones was an actual historical figure who lived for nearly a century from 1837 to 1930. Even during her lifetime, she was not the most influential agitator for workers’ rights, but she was certainly one of the most infamous. Mother Jones once bluntly advised miners: "Arm yourselves, and return home and kill every goddamned mine guard on the creeks."

Mother Jones was born in Ireland, just before the great potato famine. In many respects, her life would be marked by a series of personal tragedies subsumed into public tragedies. After a rather peripatetic youth in which she seemed often to be outrunning poverty only to run headlong into anti-Irish, anti-Catholic, and anti-immigrant prejudices, she married George Jones, an ironworker in Memphis, with whom she had four children. Then she lost not only her husband but also all four children to an epidemic of yellow fever that swept the city. To escape her great grief, she moved to Chicago, where shortly thereafter she lost all of her belongings in the Great Fire. This succession of devastating losses would become the source of much of her resolve as a labor leader.

As beloved by miners and steelworkers as she was despised by businessmen and some congressmen, Mother Jones understood the politics of public opinion. In many instances, she had less regard for her personal safety than her opponents did. Whereas she welcomed violent confrontations and jailings, her opponents did not wish to transform her from a great nuisance into a martyr. As much as they would have liked to be rid of her, no one wanted to be marked as the one who had brought harm to her.

by Paul Lukacs

[Boston: Houghton, 2001]

Lukacs provides an engaging history of the American wine industry. Long overshadowed by European wineries, American winemakers have recently established a competitive presence not only domestically but internationally.

Previous to the post-World War II era of general American prosperity, wine-drinking had paradoxical associations within the American popular consciousness. On the one hand, wine was considered an expensive indulgence of the pretentiously wealthy. In this sense, it suggested sophistication, dandyism, or, less positively, effeminacy. American working men drank beer and spirits and had no "taste" for the wines that their wives sipped when they were putting on some "airs." At the other end of the spectrum, cheap wine was the last undoing of the drunkard. It was what an alcoholic was reduced to when he had become so destitute that he could no longer afford rot-gut whiskey.

Lukacs delineates the economic and social developments that have allowed for a more widespread appreciation of wine among the American population. These developments include the expansion of the middle class through the upward movement of the working classes, the diversification of choices in the American grocery store and diet, the renewed interest in French culture and cuisine briefly but memorably fostered by First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, the increase in foreign travel brought about by the expansion of the commercial airlines, and the general emphasis on the importance of leisure time and the development of the various "industries" that exist to fill it or to make the most of it. In addition, moderate wine-drinking has been promoted as a healthful activity, even as immoderate drinking of beer and spirits has been denounced as the root of criminal carelessness or the evidence of disease.

Emphasing the peculiarly American faith in science, technology, ingenuity, and innovation, Lukacs shows how, in this most tradition-bound of arenas, the "American way" has more than matched European traditionalism. He singles out Robert Montavi as the most influential figure in the transformation of the American wine industry–as the person who made the phrase "wine industry" a double source of American pride, rather than an oxymoron.

Aaron Rotsinger

We all know the price of gasoline is rising ridiculously high these days. In fact, today was the first time I've ever paid $1.44 for a gallon of unleaded gasoline. Why the increase? Are the soaring prices foreshadowing an imminent shortage of gasoline? If so, it wouldn't be because there isn't any to produce.

It seems the OPEC, the organization of countries controlling the production of most of the world's oil, decided a while back that they weren't making enough money off of a barrel of oil. With all the oil being produced, the price was dropping dramatically. Tired of getting less than $15 dollars a barrel at the beginning of last year, OPEC decided to cut back on production. The law of supply says that if price and/or demand for a product drops, the producer will decrease production. This is exactly what happened.

The problem was, the price of crude oil was far below equilibrium price. This was a result of too much of it being produced. Oil producing nations just weren't satisfied with the prices they were getting for their oil, so they decided to cut back production. As a result, the decreased availability of crude oil made it much more expensive to obtain. Prices are up as high as $30 dollars a barrel in the beginning of the year 2000. But is the price of oil now going above the equilibrium price? In an effort to drive prices up, the nations of OPEC may possibly create a shortage. Such a shortage could drastically hamper the economy of industrialized nations, such as the US, who rely on gasoline to power their vehicles. If gasoline is too expensive, or not available, many people will not be able to get to their jobs, or perform other daily tasks that are necessary to maintain a healthy economy. Although crude oil is an inelastic product, if the price goes too high or the demand exceeds the supply, we are all in serious trouble. The nations of OPEC should use the inelasticity of oil to solve the problem. Instead of cutting back supply, a price agreement should be arranged. As long as oil is available, and not ridiculously high, people will continue to purchase it. It is certain we can never have too much oil, at least until alternative fuel sources make an adequate substitution.

Unemployment Rates

Amy Goubeaux

One of society's goals is to have full employment. This article explains that although the unemployment rate drops below 5%, there are still millions of people who do not have jobs and are not working. However, economists are not worried by these findings because of the constant level of frictional unemployment. This is the level of unemployment that occurs when people change jobs, enter the job market, or reenter the job market. The article also goes on to explain that finding the right or best job is not

always easy or even possible because information concerning many jobs is not freely accessible. Furthermore, this means that people, most of the time, find jobs through trial and error. It takes time and effort to weed out the job that is ideal to that person's personality and life. This means that people usually will apply and seek out many different jobs before deciding on one. The person can either reject or except the job offer. However, the person must take into consideration the time and money that the person is wasting and not receiving while being unemployed. Also, many people who quit or are laid off expect to go out and find a job immediately that pays the same as the old job did. All too often that this does not happen. This person, again, is also wasting time and money. Although, they may find a job that pays five dollars less, it may just be worth it considering the time and money wasted looking for a job that compares to the old as ar salary. This article related to the section of the book on economic goals, along with price stability, economic growth and efficiency. Furthermore, this article uses many line graphs and plotted point graphs. These graphs allowed me to visually understand the relationships between time and money that are associated with this information about frictional unemployment. The graphs also showed me when it was time to accept an offer due to the waste of time and money. Also, I believe that this was the best choice for the graphs.

Brad Hemmelgarn

The article attached is about Michael Jordan becoming part owner of the Washington Wizards. Now that Jordan is part owner of the franchise, he will have to make some very important decisions. Jordan will have to meet with the other owners, as well as the coaches and players to tell them what direction he would like to see the team to head. Then they will have to have several meetings to discuss their plans and the future of the franchise. They first need to sit down and plan, organize, influence and control what their goals are for the franchise. Then they need to take into consideration their available assets. They need to find out if the people in the organization are valuable for the direction they want to go. They also have to take into consideration their budget and raw materials. They also have to have the right capital for the direction they are heading. They also need to figure out which management approach they want to use. They could use the classical, management science, behavioral, contingency or the system approach to management. The way it sounds they are using the classical, contingency and definitely the behavioral management approach. Jordan and his employees will definitely need to use the behavioral approach because they definitely need to have an understanding of the players as well as the coaches. They also need to consider the guidelines for establishing quality objectives. They need to let the players and coaches have a voice in setting them. They need to state the objectives clearly and relate objectives to specific actions whenever it is necessary. Finally they need to specify when the goals are expected to be achieved and set the objectives only in relation to other organizational objectives.

Carrie Brodbeck

The article "Frericks set up 'home' in Kettering," covered many different aspects of Economics. The couple, Jim and Sarah Frerick, have set up a company that specializes in interior design. Their specialization comes from them concentrating their labor on a single task and becoming very good at it. Most companies have coordination problems, but by owning their own drapery and upholstery workrooms, the Frericks have diminished this problem. They still have interdependence with other companies, who may supply them with the materials they need to run their business. Since this couple now owns their own drapery and upholstery workrooms, they have formed an absolute advantage over other interior design companies. Being able to do their own drapes and upholstering allows them to cut down on cost. Their time is used more efficiently, because they can have things done faster by doing it themselves, without orders being shipped out. This also allows them to efficiently handle more customers in the same amount of time. Profits are an incentive for the Frericks to dispel the stuffy image of interior design which will cause more people to use their services. They also used this incentive to change their business over the long run. They bought a bigger place because they wanted to be able to supply more of their services to more people. Interior design has become an industry with a growing demand. The Frericks used the long run to change their capabilities in order to supply their services to more customers.

Dylan Luth

This article relates well to both our in-class discussions and to our text. The subject of mergers of major corporations is a major news topic these days and this article helps to address the economic aspect of what may happen as these companies operate in the future. The text aspect that is addressed has to do with the kind of partnerships that are being made between these companies and the fact that they are using the Internet as their marketing tool.

A major question that must be answered is whether or not this type of partnership is going to be profitable for the involved companies. The advantages of these companies joining hands are much the same as that of any partnership, but the way in which they are attempting to sell their product has a very different twist. With the combination of the businesses they are getting more money, talent, and better resources, but whether they will work well together is yet to be seen.

By putting competing products on the same Web page, one would think that they are hurting their own business, but this allows for potential buyers to see the entire market and who is selling what. In a way this opens up a whole new door in which the companies who are now affiliated can make a market for products that may once have been impractical. The companies are making their own market for products that may not have sold under other circumstances. What is questionable is whether or not the Net can create a market that will produce the money expected, when there is more than one company name being sold on specific sites.

Repercussions are possible for the consumer though. If this kind of business is successful, it is possible that we may lose our ability to demand certain products. These mega-joint companies sell only the products they are affiliated with. If this kind of buying out takes place more and more then, eventually there will be a sort of monopoly on what names are offered in the product market. Consumers could lose their freedom of choice, which is guaranteed under the principle of consumer sovereignty. None of this can be said for sure but as more businesses combine and turn to the Net, the possibilities are endless.

Erin Zechiel

This article is from the February 7, 2000, Business section of Fort Wayne, Indiana's Journal Gazette. It was written by Paul Tulenko from Scripps Howard News Service. In class, we learned about the four main forms of business firms: proprietorships, partnerships, corporations, and cooperatives. This article discusses a type of proprietorship, a home-based business, in which you do not work for anyone or have anyone work for you on a regular basis.

The advantages of proprietorships that we learned in class apply to this type of business. You are your own boss. You make all the decisions. No one tells you what to do; as Tulenko so eloquently puts it, "No employer gets in the way, telling you how to do your job." He acknowledges that owning a home-based business has its disadvantages, as well. You have a tremendous amount of responsibility as the owner. You have to work very hard and are subject to taxes. He seems to believe, however, that the benefits of a home-based business far outweigh the disadvantages.

Tulenko certainly makes the idea of owning a home-based business sound attractive. He makes it sound easy, although at the end he does acknowledge, "Of course it's not as simple as all that." Owning your own business would take a lot of hard work personal strength, and dedication, but I believe that it would be worth the effort.

Jeanette Bachelor

My husband is still amazed when I pick up the Wall Street Journal and read it. When trying to find the "right" article to do my essay on, this article caught my eye, not only with its title-but through its use of line graphs. The time series shows that the average number of mall visits each month per shopper peaked in 1989, but the average amount of time spent in the mall per visit peaked in 1997.

This article told me what researchers are learning about the American woman's beloved pastime and necessity: shopping. We all have to purchase necessities, and sometimes we want the luxuries, too. Even shopping has its opportunity costs. And often it is the time spent away from our family (because my husband would rather watch football than shop). Many of today's women are hard-pressed for their valuable time. But when in need of a pair of black heels, I would not be willing to substitute a pair of navy ones. This is when the search begins.

The article discusses the strategy of having shoppers walk through the malls in search of the right pair of shoes. Comparison-shopping has its lure and hopeful result: impulse buying. This leads to consumption choices. Storefronts have depended on enticing consumers with their product differentiation. Malls have found that they are now competing with the convenience of online shopping.

According to the researchers, the malls of the future should have differentiated competitors within an entire wing. This would prevent the confusion and exhaustion of wandering through a multi-tiered complex. Some malls are now offering their shoppers Web-technology in locating a store in their complex carrying a particular item.

Jenny Kaup

In the article, A Guide to Act II in the Antitrust Trial, the author writes of the lawsuit that has been pending against Microsoft for more than 75 days. U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield has come to the conclusion that Microsoft has a monopoly in operating systems for personal computers. Although the judge has yet to impose any disciplinary action on Microsoft. The conclusion to the case may not come until next year.

I believe this article relates to our class readings and lectures in a few different ways, but there is one main way that stood out in my mind as I read the article. It relates to chapter three in our book and in our discussions about social responsibility and especially business ethics.

It seems to me that Microsoft has not been displaying ethical behavior. There are many reasons stated throughout the article to support my opinion about Microsoft's behavior towards their competitors, as well as others.

One reason is that Microsoft tried to freeze Netscape out of the market by threatening computer manufacturers that wanted to offer Netscape's browser. Another reason is because they tied their browser to Windows in an attempt to shut out all other competition such as Sun, Linux, and America Online. A third reason is simply statements made by people at Microsoft. One such statement was about their intention to control the entire market for personal computer software and allow no competition. The previous two reasons also support their desire to control the entire market.

In conclusion, I believe that Microsoft is not only displaying unethical behavior towards its competitors but society as a whole as well. It is not fair to society for Microsoft to have a monopoly in operating systems for personal computers, as this leaves them with only one operating system to choose from whether they like it or not.

Kim Magoto

The process of acquiring money is a task that almost everyone wishes were easy to achieve. Unfortunately, the dream for many Americans to be rich or to be wealthy will only remain a fantasy too far-fetched to ever accomplish. Despite the fact that the U.S. is "in the midst of its longest period of sustained growth in history with the stock market breaking records and the unemployment rate being very low," the fine dividing line separating those who are poor and those who are well off still prevails. This is called the poverty line. It is defined in terms of income and depends on how many live in a household.

Currently, the federal government has drawn the line as $ 16,600 for a family of four. An example of this occurs in the article, "Money Matters," by Dirk Johnson. It discusses the life of two young girls who attend the same school, share the same dreams, yet differ in how much money each family owns.

One girl, Ada, is ashamed to admit that she falls under the title of a poverty-stricken family. The other girl, Pence, is fortunate to come from a wealthy family who can afford to have her play sports, own her own car, and even have her own computer.

It's unfortunate for those who possess big dreams for the future but have difficulty achieving them, because of the atmosphere they were raised in. This is what is happening to Ada. Although she wants to become a psychiatrist some day,. The fact that her family is so broke is a major let down in affording her the opportunity to receive any college experience. Yet, it's no problem for Renee. She just assumes that she is going to college.

According to statistics, "nearly one out of every five children are poor." One might ask how this can be helped or prevented from happening down the road. Our economics book recommends "providing increased employment and educational opportunities." Another way to assist those in poverty is by transfer payments which are subsidies paid out of tax receipts to supplement the income. They include public assistance or money payments for the poor, unemployment compensation for those who lose their job, and Social Security benefits for the blind, disabled, and the aged. Also, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is a program referred by many as workfare. Workfare requires public assistance recipients to "work" for the public assistance they receive. Workfare is supposed to help people learn job skills and to move them off the welfare rolls and into the workforce.

Other ways to help impoverished families is by providing specific types of goods to supplement cash income. The largest federally financed program includes food stamps. Not only do food stamps provide help to low-income families, but they also provide a more balanced and nutritious diet.

Another nutritional assistance program that helps out young children is called Women, Infants, and Children (WIG). Also, medicaid is a program that provides families with adequate health care. This has been one of the fastest growing expenditures due to the rising cost of health care.

Lastly, Social Security is a system that is designed to keep older Americans from falling into poverty. It provides retirement and health benefits and assistance to the aged , disabled, and the blind.

Sadly, even though programs of assistance are formed and working hard to prevent or lower poverty levels, the unfortunate families continue to fight for survival. The New York Times reveals that the "gulf between the richest and the poorest Americans ha widened." And, as always as in the past, a booming economy leaves many Americans behind.

Terry Sudman

What aspect of Economics is this article about? High fixed cost service businesses, which means the businesses' costs to run their facilities will not change whether they are busy or not. Also about discretionary income, or the idea of "fun money." The changes in supply and demand are also discussed.

How does the article relate to class discussions or the text material? The fixed cost topic was discussed in class on 01-18-00 and briefly mentioned again on 01-25-00.The text discusses fixed costs on page 155 in the book. Discretionary income was discussed briefly on 01-11-00 and on 01-18-00. Changes in supply and demand were explained on 01-18-00 in class.

Using Franklin County as an example, the article explains many different situations with economy in the hotel business. Although there are more rooms available for people to stay in than there were last year, demand has increased for these rooms, causing hotel rates in this county to rise. This fact shows how supply and demand works in hotels, because as we discussed in class, changes in demand and supply cause prices to change more than vice versa. The quote from the Visitors Bureau's vice president is directly related to high fixed cost service businesses. These businesses must try to "fill the room" or "fill the seat" even at a lower cost to the customer if necessary, because if there is no one in these spots at all it hurts worse than if the businesses would have just lowered the prices for last minute guests. The amounts of how much the average visitor spends in a day are also given. This tells the reader that Franklin County is probably doing quite well economically because of these tourists and businessmen spending their money there instead of somewhere else. This money then ends up in the hands of the hotel or restaurant staff, for example. They end up with more discretionary income than they expected, and feel optimistic about their money situation. This makes them spend more money and so on, thus strengthening the economy even more.

Niel Loll

The article Intel at War deals with the problem of supply and demand. Intel, current worldwide dominator of the microprocessor market, is being forced to diversify its company in order to keep profits on the rise. Because of increasing consumer demand for specialized communications chips, Intel is expanding their mix of "what" to produce: (Study of Economics, Pg. 44)

Consumer demand is for better chips for communications hardware, and Intel must supply these chips, or fall behind. Intel is equipping itself to meet consumer demand by acquiring computer network chips producing companies, and wireless phone producing companies. Perhaps Intel will combine

Computer network chips, cell phone chips, and their own microprocessors to create some sort of superchip, designed specifically for wireless web-connected laptop and hand held computers.

The author of the article chose to use a slightly modified column graph to illustrate how Intel has fallen into an economic rut the past few months. The graph used was quite effective in illustrating this point. It showed that even though the price per share fluctuated greatly within each month, the price actually only rose eight dollars in the past year.

I think the author chose the type of graph well, and overall, he did an excellent job of explaining Intel's problems and its strategy to overcome them.

Heather Stauger

Flexibility is the main idea of the article, Businesses warm up to making deals over Net. The only way that something can remain effective and last in the long run, is by being flexible and adaptable to change. Even the founding fathers of our United States Constitution understood the importance of flexibility. That is why Americans have the amending process to keep the laws that govern up to date.

In order for a business to create a profit in today's market, the business must be able to keep up with the leaps and bounds being made in the technical world; if die business doesn't, they will be left in the dust by their competitors.

For real life examples of flexibility and technology, I will use my own job. I work for an insurance agency. Due to the increasing costs of technology needed to arrange quotes and process claims, our agency decided to merge with another insurance agency in my town. Now, the cost of new technical equipment will be decreased due to the partnership between the firms.

Efficiency will increase for all of our clients with the addition of new labor and technology. Without being flexible, our agency would have had to accept the steep costs in the new technology system alone, which would have made a profit virtually impossible.

Technical advances are essential in the business world. Decreasing labor and increasing production will lead to higher efficiency and lower prices. Technology will also decrease the amount of capital invested in the product for the long run.

Until the world stops revolving, change is inevitable. Breaking paradigms and accepting technology in the work place will lead to efficiency, profit and a better understanding of the surrounding business market.

If businesses are reluctant to change, they will be running in a marathon with a fifty-pound weight on their backs. If they just took the time to take the weight off, they could join the rest of the pack again.

Naina Pothini

This article discusses the high oil prices in the United States this year. The article states that the gasoline prices went up due to reports of closed gasoline production at the Venezuelan refinery in Amuay Bay. This serves as a good example for one of the factors that shifts demand curve that is expectations. Consumers demand goods and firms supply those goods.

The relationship between the price and the quantity that a person buys is called individual demand curve. Adding to the individual demand curves gives the market demand curve. The people expect the supply of particular goods to rise as the demand for those goods increases, which results in increased price and quantity demanded.

The graph F.l illustrates the shift in demand curve of gasoline due to public expectations. Similarly the cold weather increases the demand for heating oil as the consumption increases. As the demand increases the market demand curve shifts to the right resulting in increase of price and quantity demanded. The graph 1.2 illustrates the shift in demand curve of the heating oil due to cold weather. On the other hand heating oil and gasoline are inelastic goods. Inelastic goods are the goods for which the quantity demanded is not sensitive to a change in price.

Elasticity is determined by many factors one of them being necessity. If the goods are necessary they are said to be inelastic and as we know gasoline and heating oil are our necessities.

The article also talks about the maximum capacity of the firms. At the higher levels of output the firm is producing close to full capacity so the supply curve is inelastic. As the demand is increasing and the supply being constant it results in shortage. Shortage occurs when the quantity demanded is more than the quantity supplied.

the ax fell

back to the salt mines

a ballpark figure

bang for the buck

banker's hours

bells and whistles

belt-tightening

the best and the brightest

the best that money can buy

the big boys

the big bucks

a big gun

the big picture

a big shot

a big-ticket item

a big wheel

boom and bust

the bottom fell out

the bottom line

their bread and butter

bring it to the table

build a better mousetrap

business is booming

business is business

call on the carpet

a captain of industry

carry the ball

cash on the barrel

chart a new course

the chance of a lifetime

climb the ladder

come to closure

a competitive edge

a component part

a concerted effort

a consensus of opinion

cover all the bases

the customer is always right

cutthroat competition

cut costs to the bone

cut to the chase

damage control

the dawn of a new age/era

a dead-end job

deep pockets

the details are sketchy

the devil finds work for idle hands

dirt cheap

drive a hard bargain

the driving force

enclosed please find

an exciting opportunity

explore every avenue

fair and equitable

a fast buck

the fast track

finalize

a financial setback

find common ground

a firm commitment

for a limited time only

for services rendered

free

the free lunch

the fruits of (our) labor

full capacity

the future is now

gainfully employed

a game plan

a general consensus

get down to business

get the green light

get your foot in the door

get in on the ground floor

getting one's money's worth

get the ax

get the ball rolling

get the word out

get one's walking papers

give the runaround

go belly up

a golden opportunity

a good-faith effort

a goodwill gesture

go over like a lead balloon

go the extra mile

go the way of the dinosaur

go through the motions

go to bat for

guardedly optimistic

guesstimate

hand over fist

(our) hands are tied

hang tough

(his/her) head is on the block

hear by the grapevine

heavy-duty

hemorrhage red ink

high man on the totem pole

highway robbery

a hit list

hit pay dirt

hit the ground running

hold (our) feet to the fire

hold (our) own

a hot commodity

a hot ticket

if they can send a man to the moon, we can . . .

(to) impact on

incumbent upon

in no uncertain terms

in point of fact

input

the inside track

interface with

in the black

in the market for

in the offing

in the short term

an ironclad guarantee

iron things out

it's a dirty job, but somebody has got to do it

jack of all trades and master of none

jump through hoops

keep a lid on

keep all (our) options open

keep an ear to the ground

keep (my) head above water

keep (my) nose to the grindstone

keep (me) posted

keep under wraps

keep up the good work

a key player

king of the hill

knock (ourselves) out

knock the bottom out of

knuckle under

the land of opportunity

a laundry list

lay the groundwork for

leading edge

lean and mean

less is more

level the playing field

leveraged to the eyebrows

lining (his) pockets

litany of complaints

lock horns with

long on promise and short on delivery

long overdue

low man on the totem pole

make an informed choice

make a killing

make it big

make or break

make short work of

make the grade

married to (my) job

(our) meat and potatoes

the medium is the message

mind (your) p's and q's

the current or previous mindset

mind the store

money in the bank

a money-making machine

money talks

money well spent

more bang for the buck

move forward in the right direction

a mover and shaker

new and improved

new and innovative

a new breed of

the new kid on the block

nice work if you can get it

nickel-and-dime

a no-nonsense attitude

no rest for the weary

not a job for the faint-hearted

not worth the paper it's written on

null and void

(our) number-one priority

a nuts-and-bolts approach

off and running

the old-boy network

on board

a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

on easy street

one hundred percent

a one-shot deal

one size fits all

on firm financial ground

ongoing

on the cheap

on the chopping block

on the cutting edge

on the drawing board

on the fast track

on the front burner

on the outside looking in

on the road to success

on the same wavelength

on the short list

on the table

on the upswing

opportunity knocks only once

the opportunity presented itself

over the hill

overworked and understaffed

owing to the fact that

(he's his) own man

parameters

a pat on the back

pay dividends

pay (my) dues

a pencil pusher

perception is reality

perennially popular

pick (my) brains

a plan of action

play ball

play both ends against the middle

play hardball

plow new ground

pocket the difference

the possibilities are endless

pound the pavement

a power breakfast/lunch

a power play

a price breakthrough

prioritize

proactive

proceed forward

a proven track record

pull the plug on

pursuing excellence

put forward

put one's neck on the line

put out to pasture

put on the back burner

put on hold

put on notice

puts (us) on the map

put (your) shoulder to the wheel

put the skids on

put through the wringer

a quantum leap

a quick fix

quid pro quo

rack (my) brains

rags to riches

raise a red flag

raise eyebrows

raise (your) sights

raise the stakes

rank and file

rank has its privileges

the rat race

the raw end of the deal

ready, willing, and able

a reality check

the reality sets in

a reasonable facsimile

record-high

redouble (our) efforts

register here to win

reinvent the wheel

rest on (his) laurels

a revolutionary new product

ride herd on

ringing off the hook

rocking the boat

room for improvement

rules and regulations

rumor has it

run a tight ship

run with the ball

sale of the century

second to none

selling like hotcakes

set up shop

sign off/sign on

smoke and mirrors

speaking the same language

spinning (my) wheels

strictly confidential

strike while the iron is hot

one's strong suit

the sweet smell of success

switch gears

tailored to individual needs

take a bath

take a beating

take the idea and run with it

a team player

there are only so many hours in a day

there's no such thing as a free lunch

they don't make . . . like they used to

things are looking up

a thousand miles apart

throw good money after bad

throw a monkey wrench into the works

time and effort

time and energy

times are tough

timing is everything

too numerous to mention

the top brass

touch base with

tough economic times

a tough sell

a track record

a trial balloon

turning a negative into a positive

uncharted waters

under (my) belt

understaffed and overworked

under the table

under the wire

up to speed

utilize

a valuable asset

a valued customer

a vested interest

voicing a concern

a vote of confidence

a wake-up call

the wave of the future

a wealth of information

weighed down by facts and figures

a welcome addition

a welcome change

welcome news

what makes America great

wheel and deal

who's minding the store

a wish list

without cost or obligation

the wonders of modern technology

working (my) butt/tail off

work day and night

work (my) fingers to the bone

work like a dog

work long and hard

a working stiff

(he) wrote the book on

you get what you pay for