Some Miss Out on Minimum Wage

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Many states have been following the push to increase the minimum wage, with the hope of increasing the standard of living, and make the minimum wage a “living wage.” Yet many workers are still missing out on wage hikes because they work for tips. Many state minimum wage laws provide some sort of exemption from workers who receive tips. There is a minimum wage, and a “tipping minimum wage,” where the minimum wage for employees whose income partially comes from tips is typically lower than the minimum wage for employees who don’t get tips. In fact, only seven states mandate Continue reading Some Miss Out on Minimum Wage→

Trump’s Import Tax on Mexico: Does it make sense?

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President Trump (just getting used to saying that) has been talking about building a wall on the border to Mexico for a while now. It’s going to be really big (yuge), the best wall you have ever seen and according to Trump, he wants Mexico to pay for it. It’s estimated that the wall would cost between $8-14 billion, a humongous price for this amazing wall. President Enrique Pena Nieto says that Mexico paying for it is not going to happen. His response: “I am dismayed by and condemn the decision made by the United States to continue building a wall that Continue reading Trump’s Import Tax on Mexico: Does it make sense?→

Is The American Dream Dead?

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Is The American Dream Still Alive? In 1970, 92% of 30-year-old Americans were earning more than their parents when they were 30, adjusted for inflation, of course. Now? Only 50% earn more than their parents did at age 30. For centuries, Presidents have been citing the American dream as they promise to build a better America. Regardless of your status, if you work hard and play by the rules, you will be rewarded with financial security.  While income certainly isn’t the best representation of well-being across households, its a pretty interesting statistic. So what’s happening to The American Dream? Are Continue reading Is The American Dream Dead?→

“City Folks Just Don’t Get It”: Farmersonly.com

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In 2005, a new niche dating site sprung up. Founded by Jerry Miller, an agricultural marketing specialist, Farmersonly.com grew from 2,000 to 2 million members in the first five years. Farmers Only joined the ranks of other niche dating sites like: Seekingarrangement.com, which links sugar daddies or mommas with sugar babies; theatlasphere.com, for lovers of Ayn Rand’s works; and cupidtino.com, for people who love Apple products. These niche dating sites are examples of thin or narrow markets, where the number of buyers and sellers are limited. While there are some incongruities between dating and other markets, mainly that the dater is simultaneously a “seller” and “buyer,” the concept Continue reading “City Folks Just Don’t Get It”: Farmersonly.com→

The Value of a Dollar in Venezuela

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 Venezuela began to face detrimentally high inflation in 2014, right after the death of previous President Hugo Chavez. Although this was not the beginning of the country’s monetary problems, high inflation has led to a huge decrease in the value of the Bolivar, Venezuela’s currency. Now prices of regular goods and services have skyrocketed. Not only has inflation led to the devaluation of the bolivar but it has also caused Venezuela’s government to panic and take precaution in order to make some goods and services cheap while others are staying severely expensive. In attempt to resolve and or manage the Continue reading The Value of a Dollar in Venezuela→

Advertising in the Era of Ad Blockers: A Brief Introduction

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Ad blockers have become something of a staple for regular internet users, with plugins such as Adblock Plus and uBlock Origin having more than 17 million downloads between them on Google Chrome alone. This should come as no surprise to anyone who has spent a significant amount of time online, as advertising is simply everywhere, from insidious advertisements on the tops of web pages to more intrusive forms such as the notorious pop-up. According to a study cited by advertising company Pagefair, there were approximately 198 million active ad block users globally. These users put an alleged $22 billion dent Continue reading Advertising in the Era of Ad Blockers: A Brief Introduction→

Race as a Variable: The Progressive Era

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The Progressives of the late 19th century and early 20th century paved the way for expanded government and socialistic policies. But when looking back at these the ideas and views of the economists, sociologists, and other experts at that time there is an overwhelming cloud of prejudice behind their ideologies. They sought to change the way of thinking about society as whole and how to better it, but this led them to see “inferior” individuals as negatively affecting society. Of course, it is important to remember that this was a different era, dating back before the civil rights movements of Continue reading Race as a Variable: The Progressive Era→

Trump Promises Lifting of Restrictions on Louisiana’s Oil and Gas Industry

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Donald Trump has made a lot of promises over the past year or so on the campaign trail, some more believable than others. One of the promises that is more believable is the idea that fossil fuel energy will be let loose. Trump furthered his promise in a rally in Baton Rouge about lifting the regulations on the oil and gas industries in Louisiana. These industries are extremely important to the economy in Louisiana but come with the mark of unclean energy, something that brings caution with the continued warming of the globe. However, Trump hasn’t put any stock in Global Warming, Continue reading Trump Promises Lifting of Restrictions on Louisiana’s Oil and Gas Industry→

Is the Discipline of Economics Lacking Diversity?

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It’s rather interesting to think about different fields of study and the gender break down within them. For example I took a psychology class here at UPS, in which there were only two men. In contrast I took a computer science class in which I was the only girl out of 23 students. But women are not necessarily misrepresented in the field of economics– look at Janet Yellen, the most powerful economist in the world. But at the same time Elino Ostrom is the only female to win the Nobel Prize in Economics, and she herself was a political scientist. Continue reading Is the Discipline of Economics Lacking Diversity?→

Keynes vs Hayek

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In the world of economic study there are many different schools of thought, but two influential economists have steered the way for modern economics. John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich August Hayek were both pioneers of the early twentieth century. They developed economic theory that would shape polarizing sections of the economic belief. Keynes was a product of King’s College, Cambridge and his general theory was an examination of the economic forces behind the Great Depression. But while Keynes was developing his own theory on employment and interest rates, Hayek was doing much of the same. Hayek was an Austrian native Continue reading Keynes vs Hayek→