Basic Economics Chapter 1 Identification

Good

a commodity or service that can be utilized to satisfy human wants and that has exchange value; in other words, the means that we use to achieve our ends

Dominion Mandate

When God commanded Adam and Eve to venture out beyond the Garden to turn the whole earth into a garden by taking dominion over it.

Public policy

programs of action that proceed from legislation. Policy is set by government action; first by the legislature that passes laws, then by the executive branch that executes laws, and finally by the judicial branch that judges whether the law is upheld. The limits of what the government could do were explicitly restricted by the U.S. constitution. The basic underlying assumptions about human nature and economic principles will determine the results of policy.

Economics

the systematic study of the effective production of those goods that are most wanted with the least use of the scarce resources available

Economic principles

God’s built-in features of well-functioning human interaction in the material world

Universal principles

principles that apply to all people, in all places, at all times

“Schools” of economic thought

general categories of ideas related to the application of economic principles. This book is based in the Austrian school of thought because it is based on the natural law premise. Other schools you may hear of during the course are Keynesian, monetarist, and Marxian

Anarchists

people who believe that there is no need for government.

Totalitarian

state where government uses force to control ay aspect of life that the leader might decree. In an economic sense, central planning would be used to determine the production and distribution of goods and would displace the market.

Theology

the study of God

Philosophy

the study of God’s creation

Greco-Roman tradition

Western Civilization draws its roots from Greece and Rome. Specifically, Greek and Roman philosophers used reason and observation to find universal principles, from which, they attempted to build their philosophy.

Judeo-Christian tradition

tradition pertaining to Jewish and Christian heritage. Specifically, that all humans are fallen, guilty of sin, and desperately in need of a Savior

Doctrine of limits

because all humans are fallible, all the organizations, institutions, and structures that we create will also be flawed

Abstraction

an attempt to model or simplify some real world phenomenon to a general quality or characteristic, apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances in order to promote a better understanding.