Gregory Mankiw had an interesting article published in the New York Times today that presents an idea that I first came across in my intro to macroeconomics course. My professor started off our first lecture by half-jokingly-half-seriously stating that "once you start thinking about economics, it's hard to think about anything else."
In his piece, Mankiw is essentially animating that notion. Economics is not just studying supply-demand equilibrium or forecasting markets; it's really about studying incentives and policies coming from such a wide range of perspectives that would each purportedly increase net social welfare/utility.
One reason why economics is so intellectually satisfying is that the scientist is also a philosopher. In considering policy proposals, research, or theory, it would behoove us all to remember that reality.
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