Geoffrey Rio

11/28/15
Howell
Salt Lake Community College

Free or Equal Questions

1. Professor Friedman would say that economic freedom is not just to _reap
rewards______________ when times are good; its also to __bear the
consequences of your actions______ when times are bad.
2. Although Hong Kong had no prospects, no natural resources & little land that
could be cultivated, it became an economic powerhouse. How?
The British government couldnt be bothered with local Hong Kong affairs and the
governor favored free markets. Hong Kong never introduced those policies that
other governments did no tariffs, regulations, or government intervention in the
economy. This allowed the economy to evolve the natural way. And as a result Hong
Kong became an economic power house.
Hong Kong
3. ______Free Markets__________ have spread around the world. At the same time,
weve seen the fastest human progress ever, and it has been led by the countries
that __opened up their economies____. In fact, average incomes around the
world have almost doubled. Globally, extreme poverty has been more than halved
since Milton Friedman did his series in 1980. Amazingly, 730 million people have
been _____liberated from poverty______________.
4. Human and political freedom has never existed (and cannot exist) without a large
measure of ___economic freedom_______________. Those of us who have been so
fortunate as to have been born in a free society tend to ___take freedom for
granted_________________ to regard it as the ____natural state of mankind
_______________. It is not. It is a rare and precious thing.

5. Explain the concept of creative destruction as described in the Free or Equal

video.
Creative Destruction
Constant renewal of the economy. If we want to increase our wealth and
opportunities we have to stop doing old things in old ways and start doing
innovative things in better ways. In other words we have to be creative. Most
economists think that creative destruction is necessary for economic development.
For example: Landlines used to be very popular, but now we have cell phones so all

of the people who used to install wired in homes and fix phone poles no longer have
jobs.
6. Explain why are Swedish entrepreneurs the oldest in the world, as described in
the Free or Equal video?
Because more than one hundred thirty years ago Lard Magnus Ericsson produced
cheap and reliable versions of the telephones he seen in the U.S. And because of
the Stockholm became a global center for telecommunication in the late 19 th
century and it laid the groundwork for Swedens most successful company Ericsson.
Swedish Entrepreneurs
7. Our economic system gave us Henry Ford, Thomas Alva Edison, Bill Gates & other
very successful entrepreneurs. These entrepreneurs all went in with their eyes
open, knew what they were doing & win or lose, we (society) all benefited from their
_willingness to take a chance_____. If we did not allow these successful
entrepreneurs to become incredibly rich, we would be more equal. But, would we
be better off? If entrepreneurs did not think that a possible reward for all the
____sacrifices___________, all their __hard work___________, all the risks they
take________ is a lot of wealth, then they might do something else instead. In that
case, we would not have the goods, services and technologies (they created) that
make our lives better.
8. They (the Founding Fathers) were a wise and learned group of people. They had
learned the lesson of history. The great danger to freedom is the
____concentration to power____________________, especially in the hands of a
government. They were determined to protect the citizens of the new United States
of America from that danger. And they crafted their _constitution_______________
with that in mind.
9. As Milton Friedman said, The society that puts equality before freedom will
____end up with neither____. The society that puts freedom before equality will
end up with a _____measure of both_____________________________.
10. Professor Friedman compares the concept of equality of opportunity to a race
where everyone begins at the starting line at the same time. In contrast, equality of
outcome guarantees that everyone finishes at the same time. Today, equality of
outcome is referred to as fair shares for all. If we applied the fair shares for all
concept in this class, all students would receive an average grade of C. This
would be accomplished by taking points away from students earning As and Bs to
give to students earning Ds and Es. Distributing points equally would result in fair
grades for all.
1. Would you approve of this method in calculating your final grade? Why or why
not?
No I would not. The reason I generally dont agree with this method is because
those who worked hard for their grade deserve it. Others should not benefit from
their expense. However, this is to me is also circumstantial. If Johnny was given a
text book to use, and the others were not. And Johnny received a higher grade, well,

then thats not a fair practice of fair grades for all. So maybe he should share his
grade.
2. How would this differ from fair shares for all economically? For example,
whats the difference between a successful student being required to give up some
of his/her hard-earned grade and a successful person being expected to give more
of his/her hard-earned income? If you support redistribution of income and
wealth, shouldnt you also be willing to redistribute academic grades? After all,
many of your fellow students may not have had the advantages in education and
upbringing that youve had.
It differs because I would expect our educational system to be fair. Every
student should have the ability to receive the grade their willing to work for.
However, this is a fair point. We do have to take every students situation into
consideration. Your upbringing doesnt always define you, but it more or less does.
In terms of education there should be a blanket amount each school receives, that
way every student has a fair opportunity at a decent education.
Now, in terms of redistribution of income, we should, as Americans, be willing
to give back to society. Much like Freidman said, freedom is often taken for granted,
we dont realize just how rare it is. Its all about having a fair shot at a life you wish
to have. I understand the difference in incomes, and why some have to pay a little
more, its because they make a little more.
As said in the video every man should have the ability to be rich, and the free
market has really defined that. We cant complain about a door not opening, while
the key is already inside the lock, ready to be turned.
Reflective Writing
Compose 2-3 paragraphs explaining how completing this assignment helped you
achieve at least two (2) of the SLCC Learning Outcomes:
Learning Outcome #1 (Paragraph #1)
Thinking critically and creatively.
This assignment really opened up my mind to both sides of the
conversation. I feel that I have a better understanding of economics and how it
effects politics because of this course. The real benefit of this assignment was as
said before, seeing both sides of the conversation. And gaining another perspective.
Fair share for all really broke down a big idea of what goes around in our world
today. This assignment pushed me to think more critically and to become a little
more creative with my answers to some of the questions.
Students communicate effectively.
This assignment taught me to listen closely to all of the information on
the video. It did take me a little bit longer than expected to get through this
assignment due to me having to stop and rewind so often, but I prevailed. Ive also
gained knowledge of words that I did not understand. Vocabulary is key in terms of
communication and this assignment has challenged me in many ways, and e its

stated conversations between my family and myself, allowing us to see where one
another stands on the redistributing of grades or income. Overall Ive enjoyed this
assignment and this course. And I am now considering a economic degree.