Fiscal stuff

• Automatic Stabilisers


  Economic policies and programs designed to offset fluctuations in a nation's economic activity without direct intervention by policymakers
• Automatic Stabilisers


  • Progressive tax systems
  • Unemployment benefits
  • Welfare payments
• Function of Automatic Stabilisers

  Automatically increase government spending or decrease tax revenue in a recession, and decrease spending or increase revenue during an expansion, thereby smoothing out the economic cycle
• Discretionary Fiscal Policy


  Deliberate changes in government spending and tax policies to influence economic activity
• Discretionary Fiscal Policy


  • Stimulus packages
  • Tax cuts
  • Increased infrastructure spending
• Function of Discretionary Fiscal Policy

  Requires legislative action and is used to address specific economic issues or objectives, such as stimulating demand during a recession or cooling down an overheated economy
• Fiscal Deficit


  The difference between government expenditures and revenues in a given fiscal year
• Implication of Fiscal Deficit

  Indicates the amount by which government spending exceeds its revenue in a particular year, requiring borrowing to cover the gap
• National Debt


  The total amount of money that a government owes at any given time, accumulated from past deficits
• Implication of National Debt

  Represents the sum of all past deficits minus any surpluses, including interest on the debt
• Structural Deficit


  The portion of the budget deficit that remains even when the economy is at its potential output (full employment level)
• Cause of Structural Deficit

  Result of fundamental imbalances in government revenues and expenditures, not related to the economic cycle
• Cyclical Deficit


  The portion of the budget deficit attributable to the business cycle, i.e., the difference between actual economic output and potential output
• Cause of Cyclical Deficit

  Arises due to temporary factors such as economic downturns, which reduce tax revenues and increase welfare spending
• Factors Influencing the Size of Fiscal Deficits

  • Economic Cycle
  • Government Policies
  • Interest Rates
  • Demographics
• Factors Influencing the Size of National Debts

  • Accumulated Deficits
  • Interest Rates
  • Economic Growth
  • Exchange Rates
• Significance of Fiscal Deficits - Short-term Stimulus


  Can be beneficial in stimulating economic activity during recessions
• Significance of Fiscal Deficits - Interest Rates


  Persistent large deficits can lead to higher interest rates as governments compete for borrowing funds
• Significance of Fiscal Deficits - Crowding Out


  High deficits can crowd out private investment if government borrowing leads to higher interest rates
• Significance of National Debts - Sustainability

  High levels of debt can lead to concerns about a country's ability to meet its obligations, potentially leading to higher borrowing costs
• Significance of National Debts - Investor Confidence

  Large national debts can affect investor confidence and the country's credit rating
• Significance of National Debts - Fiscal Flexibility

  High debt levels can limit a government's ability to implement fiscal policies effectively, especially in times of economic crisis
• Blanche: 'I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action.'
• her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light
• Blanche: 'And turn that over-light off! Turn that off! I won't be looked at in this merciless glare!'
• She [Blanche] takes off the blouse and stands in her pink silk brassiere and white skirt in the light through the portieres. The game has continued in undertones.
• Colour symbolism and how she only dresses in light colours as the dark coloured clothing could represent her sins
• Stanley carries his bowling jacket and a red-stained package from a butcher's.
• Stanley: 'I never met a woman that didn't know if she was good-looking or not without being told'
• Stanley, Steve, Mitch, and Pablo wear coloured shirts, solid blues, a purple, a red-and-white-check, a light green, and they are men at the peak of their physical manhood, as coarse and direct and powerful as the primary colours.
• [Stanley charges after Stella] [...] [She backs out of sight. He advances and disappears. There is the sound of a blow. Stella cries out.]
• Blanche: 'Turn that off! I wont be looked at in this merciless glare.'
• Blanche: 'I know you must have some liquor in the place! Come on, where could it be i wonder?'
• Blanche: 'I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action.'
• her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light
• Blanche: 'I don't want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic! I try to give that to people. I misrepresent things to them. I don't tell the truth, I tell what ought to be the truth.'
• Blanche: 'And turn that over-light off! Turn that off! I won't be looked at in this merciless glare!'
• They told me to take a street-car named Desire, and then transfer to one called Cemeteries and ride six blocks and get off at — Elysian Fields!
• She [Blanche] takes off the blouse and stands in her pink silk brassiere and white skirt in the light through the portieres. The game has continued in undertones.
• funerals are pretty compared to deaths. Funerals are quiet, but deaths—not always. Sometimes their breathing is hoarse, and sometimes it rattles, and sometimes they even cry out to you, "Don't let me go!"