Illustration of the Inadequacy of the Zero-Sum Game

[hcm9999]

The exporting country sells products. The importing country buys products.

Doesn't the exporting country get richer and the importing country get poorer?

When the government prints money doesn't the government get richer and the rest of the population get poorer?

When one party gets richer and the other party gets poorer, isn't it zero-sum game?

[Slipknotyk06]

@hcm9999 - What truly destroys the zero-sum fallacy is the first portion of the export portion. Assume that you drill for oil. You destroy a drill head in attempting to access that oil. When you do, you have used resources to gain a resource. When you access that oil, let's assume it's 1,000,000 barrels. You have expended labor, and resources to gain an asset. You have used probably 10 million dollars to gain potentially 100 million.

[Slipknotyk06]

@hcm9999 - In addition, if country A's exporter sells to Country B's importer, that individual sale doesn't net a zero sum. Country A's exporter has gained a profit in the transition of buying the product from the local market to selling to the importer.

Then, country B's importer is typically not geared to sell the product to the local populace, so it sells to a retailer. The Importer gains a profit here, and then, the retailer sells for a profit.

[Slipknotyk06]

@hcm9999 - You're over-simplifying man. Read some basic economic textbooks. If zero-sum was really the rule, GROWTH would be impossible. Economies couldn't support adding more people, and worldwide starvation would occur from lack of food. Profit is what allows you to seek more resources, and create new production, which generates wealth.

[hcm9999]

@Slipknotyk06

Could you indicate some basic economic textbooks that say that zero-sum is a fallacy? It would be better if you could indicate a website.

[Slipknotyk06]

@hcm9999 -

Dr. Thomas Sowell - Economic Facts and Fallacies

F. A. Hayek - Austrian Theory of the Business Cycle

Henry Hazlitt - Economics in One Lesson

Ludwig Von Mises - Economic Freedom and Interventionism

Milton Friedman - Price Theory

Here's a video from a friend /watch?v=qMUHwj4ibZc

Also, watch Mises Institute videos.

[hcm9999]

@Slipknotyk06

Can you tell me the page or give me a quotation from these books that says zero-sum is a fallacy? I cannot buy and read all these books just to find there is nothing written on them.