1. Why do poor countries and rich countries get different pay for equal work?

From simple jobs such as washing dishes in restaurants to complex jobs such as surgeons, employees in China are paid far less than their American counterparts in almost all industries. We can also directly compare the actual living standards of food, clothing, housing, transportation and play through exchange rate conversion without monetary income. This conclusion still holds.

Some economists explain that generally speaking, American workers use advanced tools, so the same labor output is more valuable. In the service industries such as washing dishes and hairdressing, advanced tools have not played much role. Besides, China also has a highly automated assembly line, where the treatment of workers is still not as good as that of American workers.

Because poor countries and rich countries have different pay for equal work, when there is trade between them, products with a little labor force in rich countries can be exchanged for products with a lot of labor force in poor countries, so some economists think that rich countries have exploited poor countries. However, when there is no trade, the phenomenon of different pay for equal work still exists, which obviously cannot be explained by exploitation. It is precisely because of this phenomenon that many people want to emigrate to rich countries so that they can enjoy the same labor force. Political economy tells us that all wealth is created by labor, and labor is the only source of wealth. According to this theory, the same quality and quantity of labor should create the same value, but political economy has never made any minimum explanation for the fact that rich countries and poor countries have different pay for equal work.

2. Does speculation create wealth?

Here we define speculation as an activity in which some people neither produce nor consume, but only buy and don't sell, making money from the bid-ask price difference. This includes real estate speculation, stock speculation, futures speculation, and hoarding to make a profit from it.

If speculation does not create wealth, then the money earned by speculation is just a kind of deception in disguise, which is not much different from gambling. Most governments in the world prohibit gambling, but few prohibit speculation.

If speculative money does create wealth, then this money should be included in the gross national product. So, who do speculators serve? What products have you produced? What contribution have you made to society?

3. Can exchanges create value?

It is said that the characteristic of market economy is equivalent exchange, which probably means that both buyers and sellers can't make money.

No one will suffer. But doing business is not about letting children play house, but making money. Whether it is international trade or domestic trade, any fair trade in which both parties actively participate will bring benefits to both parties at the same time. Of course, this does not mean that business can always make money and lose money. But in most cases, as long as both parties agree voluntarily, neither party can lose money.

If you admit that exchange can make money, where does this new value come from?

Suppose you exchange an axe for a sheep. Before and after the exchange, it was a sheep and an axe, but the owner was changed. From the point of view that labor creates value, exchange can create profits, which cannot be justified.

Do you believe that exchange can create value, or do you firmly believe that exchange cannot create value? What's your reason? What's wrong with the other statement?

4. What determines the exchange rate?

The exchange rate is the exchange rate of two currencies. Money is valuable because it has purchasing power, so the ratio of currency exchange should obviously be equal to the purchasing power ratio of two currencies. This statement is widely popular in today's superficial textbooks, but its mistake is obvious, because the purchasing power ratio of two currencies depends on what you buy. For example, if you buy a car in US dollars, its purchasing power is about 20 times that of RMB, but if you buy sneakers in US dollars, two dollars will not be worth one yuan. In fact, it is precisely because of the difference in purchasing power between the two currencies when buying various commodities that international trade has emerged. It's cheaper to buy a car in dollars, but it's cheaper to buy sports shoes in RMB, which is why China exports sports shoes for cars.

A further view of the above problem is that the exchange rate depends on the supply and demand of the two currencies. When the demand for RMB to buy US dollars exceeds the supply, the exchange rate of US dollars will rise, and vice versa. However, this answer is only a description of reality and has not been explained in economic theory. For example, what is the relationship between such exchange rate and purchasing power comparison? What are the characteristics of this exchange rate? Is it good for both countries, bad for both countries, or good for one of them?

5. What's wrong with "planned and proportional"?

The basic law of socialist economy is "planned and proportional". Whenever the national economy goes wrong, we can always make a lot of money.

Now it is caused by some kind of imbalance, so grasping the proportion in advance will not cause the problem of imbalance, which is why there is a saying that there is a plan and a proportion. The market economy is regulated by thousands of producers and consumers through the price mechanism, which is undoubtedly blind. Of course, the price can really adjust the surplus and shortage, because when the supply exceeds the demand, the price drops, thus increasing consumption and reducing production; When demand exceeds supply, the opposite is true. But there is no guarantee that this surplus and deficiency adjustment will reach the proportion we need. What is the reason why we abandoned this basic law and changed to blind regulation by the market?

6. Can money measure value? Under what conditions can I? Under what conditions can't?

We know that anything that cannot be exchanged cannot be valued by money. Health is valuable, but it cannot be exchanged. When a person is sick, no matter how much money he is willing to give to others, no matter how much money others are willing to exchange their health, it is actually impossible. Besides health, friendship, love, the satisfaction of creative desire and curious desire, etc. , can't use money to exchange.

So, can everything that can be exchanged be measured by money? The price of factory products is higher than that of its raw materials. Does the price difference accurately represent the value created by the factory? Due to the fluctuation of market price, even if the production situation in the factory is exactly the same, will the wealth it creates change accordingly? Does a man who makes money in business prove that he has created value?

7. What determines the price of a thing?

We know that price equals cost plus profit. Generally speaking, enterprises know the cost of products, so the above questions can also express what determines profits.

The profit varies greatly, sometimes it may be negative, which is the loss of the enterprise; Sometimes it may exceed the cost and make the profit rate reach 100%. Enterprises don't want to make more money, so what limits profits?

What is the reasonable profit? If you are a price inspector, how will you perform your task? At what level can the profit rate be called profiteering? If you think that a profit margin of more than 50% can be regarded as profiteering, how can you convince people who insist on 10%?