Parable of the broken window

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The parable of the broken window is a parable of the French economist Frédéric Bastiat , which appeared for the first time in 1850 as part of the essay "What you see and what you don't see". The parable makes it clear that it is wrong to see the destruction of goods as an increased or constant overall benefit for society.

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Hans Biedermann's son smashes a window pane. The father is angry because he has to pay six francs to replace the disc. Hans is consoled by those present, however, that the destruction would benefit the glazier, who will receive the six francs. Popular wisdom says: "What would happen to the jars if you never smash panes?"

interpretation

Bastiat agrees that the glazier will benefit from the six francs. This is what you see . Bastiat emphasizes that one should not forget that Hans Biedermann could have spent the six francs on new shoes instead. The shoemaker, who now no longer receives the six francs, is what one cannot see , as is the use of new shoes, which Hans misses because he has to replace the pane.

criticism

Conservative politicians often use this parable to argue that community spending to repair damage has invisible consequences ( opportunity costs ). Keynesians, on the other hand, emphasize that this is only the case when the economy is at 100% capacity; in the event of a recession, however, state involvement has a positive boost. One example was the scrapping bonus .

Even repairing damage caused by natural disasters could trigger positive growth effects in the short and long term.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Robert Nielsen: ... even something as destructive as breaking windows can increase employment and boost economic growth
  2. ↑ Mark Skidmore, Hideki Toya: Do Natural Disasters Promote Long-Run Growth? In: Economic Inquiry . No. 40 (4) , 2002, pp. 664-87 , doi : 10.1093 / ei / 40.4.664 .