Niall Kishtainy: “Why We Should All Become Economists and ASAP”

Economics is a relatively unknown and slightly terrifying field. Logically, that makes economists relatively unknown and slightly terrifying people. But it doesn’t have to be that way. The field is as multifaceted as any other and the people who busy themselves with it are no different from anyone else; like the renown saying goes, they “put their pants on just like the rest of us: one leg at a time.” When you think about it, already today, each of us can use economics to solve the pressing global issues of the day. Take, for example, if you drink one bottle of wine a day (not recommended by the editors of this article), you will have to plan on buying seven bottles, or one for each day of the week. Multiply that by fifty-two and you are sure to have enough wine to satisfy your thirst for one year. Multiply that number of bottles by seven billion and the entire world can toast with you on any given day (the “marginal cost” per bottle and the “externalities” of seven billion drunk people partying 24/7 don’t need to enter the calculation yet). Joking aside, Niall Kishtainy, whose outstanding book on the history of economics ended up on the reading list of the world’s decision makers after being reviewed in Foreign Affairs Magazine, is here to convince us of why economics is relevant to all of us and why we all need to consider ourselves practicing economists ASAP. Come welcome Niall to our show!