【美国精神】第11期

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Explanation:  

    If you want to start a business, maybe by opening a restaurant or a clothing store, the United States is a good place to do it.  This is because the U.S. has a capitalist, or market, economy, making it acceptable¹ and fairly easy for private entities² (or individuals and businesses that are not owned by the government) to buy, sell, and trade things for money without government interference³ (or involvement by the government). In the U.S., the government doesn’t decide how much things should cost or how much of something should be produced (or made). Instead, prices and production are decided⁴ based on a system called supply and demand, which refers to how much of a thing exists and how many people want to have that thing. How do we know how much supply and demand there is for a product?  There are two important factors. The first is profit (or money a business gets by selling something), and the second is self-interest, which is when a person makes decisions based on what is best for him or herself, without paying attention to what is best for other people. 

 

    A man named Adam Smith is considered the father of American capitalism⁵. He wrote about his ideas in a famous book called The Wealth of Nations. He believed that a capitalist system is run by an invisible⁶ hand. The invisible hand is the idea that there is no need for government interference in the economy because the self-interest of individuals will serve the greater good (or the maximum benefits for everyone in society).  

 

    To understand this idea, imagine that a store near your home sells a piece of candy for $20. You think that this price is too high, but it is the only place to buy candy, so if you want candy, you have to pay the $20. However, if the store across the street begins selling the same piece of candy for $1, you will act in your own self-interest and buy the less expensive candy. The more expensive store will be forced to lower its candy prices to compete with the cheaper store, or else it won’t sell any candy and won’t make any profit. In this situation, everyone involved has acted out of self-interest, and the final result is a lower price for candy.  The lower prices will serve the greater good of everyone in the neighborhood, because everyone can buy more candy. This is the basic principle (or explanation) behind the invisible hand and the United States’ market economy. 

 

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