Friday, December 11, 2009

Economics in "My Fair Lady"

People sometimes don't believe me when I tell them I think about economics day and night. But here is an example even I think is unusual. I literally woke out of sound sleep the other night thinking “Economics in My Fair Lady." I had been flipping through channels the other night thinking and noticed the movie was playing. I thought my one son (who generally loves old musicals) might enjoy it, but I couldn't cajole him into watching with me. Consequently, I didn't watch any of it, but that is what planted the seed.

I think my mind was running through the various numbers and must have gotten stuck on Eliza's song, "All I Want...". It's a cute little ditty about Eliza's simplicity, but it deals with wants and prioritizing them. Those of us of a certain age can remember "wants and needs." But we don't separate them like that anymore. We focus instead on prioritizing wants – what is needed to survive, etc.

The song works because Eliza talks about the things she wants and they can be prioritized quite easily. Just a final bit of fun for the weekend.

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