Challenge me….

American Expansion

What would you be willing to give up?

In order to get perfect grades would you give up……. your free time every Saturday?…. your participation in any extracurricular activities?…. any of your weekend activities?…. all of your spending money and give it to your teacher?

What would you be willing to give up?

In order to get the new car of your dreams would you give up….

…two weekends with your best friends?

…one year with your best friends?

…ever seeing your best friends again?

AMERICAN EXPANSION

Life is about making choices, and with every choice, a trade-off must be made. For every choice there are costs and there are benefits.

• How often do you make choices where the benefits outweigh the costs?

• How often do you make choices the costs outweigh the benefits?

American Expansion

How often do you make choices where the benefits outweigh the

costs?

How often do you make choices the costs outweigh the benefits?

American Expansion

Has the United States given-up too much in order to become “successful”?

Has the United States become victim of its own success? Explain your opinion.

American Expansion

Everything that we have in our world costs someone something. Nothing is for free. You have what you have because someone else does not have it.

Would you be willing to give up part of your standard of living to allow someone a higher standard of living?

SCARCITY

Limited supply of the factors of production.

Everything in life is limited… When thinking of economics, consider the

following: land, labor & capital.

Give some examples of specific Scarce items.

TRADE-OFFS

Choice between alternative uses for a given quantity of resources.

Resources are always scarce with relation to the demand for them.

Given “X” amount of money, one always must choose how to spend it.

OPPORTUNITY COSTS

What must be given up when a trade-off is made.

The real economic cost of a good or service produced measured by the value of the sacrificed alternative.

What did you lose in the choice that was made?

WHY DO NATIONS

EXPAND??

POWER

Ability to influence others and get them to do what you would like.

• Politically• Economically• Socially• Militarily• Religiously

SECURITY

Something that gives or assures safety, tranquility, certainty, etc.; protection;

safeguard. Protection of borders from outside threats.

• Politically• Economically• Socially• Militarily• Religiously

PRESTIGE

How others view you. The power to impress or influence others because of one’s

wealth or power.• Politically• Economically• Socially• Militarily• Religiously

Costs & Benefits

Throughout this unit we will be investigating Costs and Benefits of American Expansion.

Costs- Don’t simply think of money…consider all opportunity costs. What was given up!

Benefits- Don’t consider only the obvious, what secondary benefits can you see?