Unit 4 The Limits on Economic Freedom

If a person can do what he wishes with his own property, time and energy, then economists say that he is 'economically free'. In all communities, of course, limits are imposed upon the personal freedom of their citizens and these limits are in some cases very complex but in others relatively simple. All individuals are required to conform to the laws made by their governments.

Complete economic freedom of action can create great difficulties, because the freedoms exercised by various individuals often conflict. If citizens were completely free, some landowners might build factories in unsuitable places, while some factory-owners might make their employees work too long each day. If they were completely free, workers might stop working when they got their first pay, and come back only when they needed more money. Such economic anarchy could cause instability (unemployment; loss of production etc.) in the whole economy of a country.

Laws related to economic conditions are sometimes concerned with contracts between employers and employees. Sometimes they are concerned with workers' health, wages and pensions, and sometimes with the location of places of work. Sometimes they protect the interests principally of the workers, while at other times they may be beneficial towards the employers. The government policy towards both employees and employers will depend very much upon the political and economic ideology adopted by the government, and may be biased towards employers and capital on the one hand, or workers and the problems of labour on the other hand.

Exercise 1. Answer the questions, basing your answers on the text.

1. Under what conditions is a person economically free?

2. What is the opposite of 'simple'?

3. What are all citizens required to do?

4. Why does complete economic freedom of actions cause great difficulties?

5. What tree things might happen if citizens were completely free?

6. What kind of economy might complete economic freedom create?

7. What three worker's needs are sometimes the concern of the law?

8. Between whom are contracts arranged?

9. What else might the laws relate to, besides worker’s needs and work conditions?

10. What other important point should we note about laws related to economic conditions?

Exercise 2. Say whether these statements are true or false, and if they are false say why.

1. Economists say that a man is economically free if he can do what he wishes with his own property, time and energy.

2. Governments usually require all individuals to conform to the laws which they make.

3. Complete economic freedom of action does not create many difficulties.

4. If citizens were completely free, some landowners and factory-owners might act in unsatisfactory ways.

5. Complete economic freedom could lead to economic anarchy.

6. Anarchy is a satisfactory and desirable thing in any economic system.

7. Laws related to economic conditions are sometimes concerned with the health of the employers.

8. These laws usually protect the interests of the workers and not the employers.

9. Government policy does not depend on the political and economic ideology of the government.

10. Some ideologies are biased towards labour and others towards capital.

Exercise 3. Change the following sentences by inserting can.

EXAMPLE: He does the work easily. – He can do the work easily.

1. He earns a lot of money.

2. They work very rapidly in that factory.

3. The breeders sell a lot of horses and cattle.

4. The miners provide coal at an economic price.

5. A man with a good education usually earns quite a lot of money.

6. People satisfy their needs only if they earn money.

7. The citizens choose what they want to do.

8. People use their time and money as they wish.

Exercise 4. Exercise 3 has provided you with light sentences using can. Change can to could in this way:

EXAMPLE: He can do the work easily.

In those days he could do the work easily but not now.

Exercise 5. Combine some of the words in these sentences in order to make new com pound nouns:

EXAMPLE: (a) He owns a house. – He is a house-owner.

(b) They breed pigs. – They are pig-breeders.

1. He owns a car. f. Those men mine for coal.

2. That man owns some land. g. Those women grow fruit.

3. They breed horses. h. Mr Smith makes shoes.

4. Some capitalists own factories. i. Mr. Jones works with steel.

5. That man earns his wages. j. Mr Brown packs meat in that factory.

Exercise 6. Make these adjectives negative by adding the prefix un- :

EXAMPLE: stable  un + stable  unstable

1. economic f. scientific k. productive

2. satisfactory g. enjoyable l. conditional

3. economical h. available m. important

4. systematic i. suitable n. usual

5. necessary j. equal o. desirable

Use the appropriate adjectives in their negative forms in these sentences. The letters in brackets at the end refer to the list of adjectives above.

1. People do not like working in ___ conditions. (b)

2. The employers decided to close that factory because it was ___. (k)

3. Complete economic freedom is an ___ situation. (o)

4. Compared with own need for food, clothes and shelter, some of our wants are quite ___.(m)

5. We say that goods are sold at ___ prices, when the price is less than the cost of producing them. (a)

6. The goods he wanted were ___ at the price which he was willing to pay. (h)

Make up your own sentences with the rest of the adjectives in the negative forms.

Exercise 7. Make each pair of sentences into a new conditional sentence, changing may to might, and changing the tense.

EXAMPLE: (if) Citizens are completely free.

Factory owners may make their employees work too long each day.

If citizens were completely free, factory owners might make their employees work too long each day.

a. (if) There is no system of control.

Landowners may build factories in unsuitable places.

b. ( ) They are completely free.

Workers may work only when they need money badly.

c. ( ) They have all the money they need.

They may not work.

d. ( ) The government want to improve the general conditions of work.

They may make new laws.

e. ( ) Employers anticipate new and better working conditions.

They may increase their productivity.

f. ( ) You regularly provide essential services.

You may get more business.

g. ( ) They undertake to replace the old school with a new one.

We may provide some of the money.

Exercise 8. Find words in the text for which these words could be substituted.

1. societies (par. 1) f. lawlessness (par. 2)

2. cause (par. 2) g. written agreements (par. 3)

3. enjoyed (par. 2) h. regular pay in old age (par. 3)

4. frequently (par. 2) i. mainly (par. 3)

5. unsatisfactory (par. 2) j. inclined (par. 3)

Exercise 9. Make these words negative by adding the prefix –in.

EXAMPLE: stability  in + stability  instability

1. active e. organic i. distinct m. frequent

2. activity f. sufficient j. complete n. conclusive

3. secure g. definite k. solvent o. dependent

4. security h. adequate l. expert

Use the appropriate words in their negative form in these sentences. The letters in brackets at the end refer to the list of adjectives above.

1. Metals are ___ substances. (e)

2. Most nations like to be economically ___. (o)

3. The services which they provided were quite ___. (h)

4. If an economy becomes unstable, people begin to feel ___. (c)

5. The men were rather ___ at the kind of work which they had been asked to do. (a)

Make up your own sentences with the rest of the words using their negative forms.

Essential Vocabulary

1. community громада

2. limit обмеження

3. be required бути необхідним, обов’язковим Syn. must

4. conform to the law = obey the law

5. landowner землевласник

6. loss of production втрати виробництва

7. concerned with той, що має відношення до, зв’язаний з Syn. related to

8. be beneficial to бути вигідним, корисним

9. cost of producing витрати виробництва

10. bias відхилятись в чийсь бік

11. adopted by ухвалений, прийнятий (кимось)

12. badly підсилюв. дуже, конче, вельми

13. anticipate передбачати, очікувати, передчувати

14. brief стислий, короткий