PASOUR E COST AND CHOICE AUSTRIAN VS CONVENTIONAL VIEWS (1978)外语英文电子书.pdfVIP

JourndolLikmmn Sludis, Vol. 2. No. 4, pp. 327- 136 Q Pergrmon Press ~ t d .1978. printed in meat nniain. COST AND CHOICE -AUSTRIAN VS CONVENTIONAL VIEWS* E. C. PASOUR, JR. Department ofEconomics and Business, North Corolino Slole University The relationship between product prices and tivist concept of cost is shown to be sound as it production costs is front page news today. relates to individual choice. The limitations of President Carter assured farmers during the objective estimates of cost when used as a 1976presidential campaign that his administra- normative standard in evaluating observed tion would raise farm prices sufficiently high to market behavior are stressed. Implications of cover production costs. A year later there were the findings are related to a number of policy farmer demonstrations in the Presidents home issues and problems involving cost. town and throughout the country, protesting the unfavorable relationship between farm prices and production costs. There is also widespread sentiment for setting THENATURE OF COSTS prices of electricity, oil, natural gas and other Austrian (and virtually all other) economists energy sources on the basis of production costs. define cost in terms of opportunity cost. The Government intervention to base prices on cost opportunity cost of any decision represents the requires that costs be calculated. Politicians value of opportunities foregone as a result of and most economists (except for members of the decision made. Cost involves the conscious the Austrian school) have assumed that costs sa