Discussion Board # 2 Part 1


Unlike in the first discussion board, in this one you’ll be assigned an economic theory based on the first letter of your last name. In this first part of our discussion board, each of you is going to be assigned one of the three economic theories discussed in chapter 8 (especially pages 270-272, but also throughout the chapter) You shouldn’t need anything other than the book and/or module videos to do this assignment, but you can also use other internet sources if you would like, so long as they are reputable. Ideally, please post your response below rather than uploading it as a word document/PDF, since that’s harder for your classmates to read. I would like you to compose a 300-500 word post that summarizes the following about your theory:

1) What are the basics of your political-economic theory? What is the role of the state in your theory? What is the role of the market?

2) What are the advantages of your theory? Why might a state want to follow it?

3) What are the disadvantages of your theory? Why might a state not want to follow it?

4) What do you think of the theory? Do you find it compelling? Do you think it’s problematic? Why?

If your last name starts with the letter A through the letter G your theory is: Economic Liberalism

If your last name starts with the letter H through the letter M your theory is: Radicalism

If your last name starts with the letter N through the letter Z your theory is: Mercantilism

PLEASE NOTE: Economic liberalism IS NOT the same as liberalism as we’ve been discussing it in this course (it would more accurately be referred to as capitalism). Make sure you’re using economic liberalism for this assignment.

You can score up to 20 points based on your use of evidence, the thoroughness and accuracy of your answer, and your correct usage of grammar/spelling.