Thomas Sowell

• In this essay the economist Thomas Sowell challenges readers to rethink their idea of the word needs. •His point is that much of what people claim they “need” from the government is not needed at all but simply wanted.

• By asserting “rights” and “entitlements” based on supposed need, people --- particularly politicians --- ignore the inevitable trade-offs and jeopardize the economy and society as a whole.• Sowell’s underlying argument is that the

free markets in the private sector are more efficient than government at supplying what the citizenry can afford.

•What is the bare minimum required for people to exist?•To what extent are these requirements the responsibility of the government?

• How does Sowell define the customary use of the word needs?• Sowell defines needs in paragraph 7:

“simply things we want --- or that some of us want” (Sowell). • The definition is distinctive in implying

that the concept underlying the customary use of the word does not exist.• Very little of what we claim we need is

actually a need at all.

•What is Sowell’s underlying purpose in offering his definition?• Essentially Sowell’s underlying purpose is to convince readers that smaller government and reduced government spending on social programs benefit the economy and ultimately all citizens. This purpose is evident in paragraphs 12 and 16-20.

• What does Sowell mean when he talks about “trade-offs” (pars. 12-15)?

• By “trade-offs” Sowell refers to the fact that we can never have everything we want so we must forgo some things altogether or have less of our ideal.

• He believes that too many politicians, unwilling to face this reality, put certain services “on a pedestal,” allowing constituents to see these services as “entitlements” even though funding them is not feasible.

• Why does Sowell begin his essay with the story of Mike and the other UCLA economists?• With the opening anecdote, Sowell

establishes that economists do not use the word need lightly and take issue with those who do.• The anecdote supports his point that political

discourse invokes “needs” far too often.• Economists have a better grasp of the

concept than politicians do, he implies.

•Why does Sowell put quotation marks around the word need in his title and throughout the essay?• The quotation marks highlight the misuse of the word.•Sowell does not accept this usage.

• What is Sowell’s reason for writing about food in paragraphs 9-11 and his old car in paragraphs 15-17?• Sowell must concede that humans

genuinely require food, but defining it as a “need” produces “ [h]uge agricultural surpluses” and dangerous overconsumption.• His old car provides a clear example of

trade-offs and an opportunity to poke fun at government entitlements.

•How does Sowell use cause and effect in paragraphs 18-20?• Fulfilling one “need” causes some other real need not to be met.•Government wastefulness based on misconceived “needs” causes the economy and society to suffer.

•Sowell refers to needs as a “rigid” word (Sowell). What is his point in using this adjective?•Rigid emphasizes that needs and similar words used by politicians undermine flexible trade-offs and impede our thinking, creating “havoc in our policies” (Sowell).

humbug (8) - something devoid of sense or meaning; nonsenseallocation (12) – a share or portion entitlement (12) - the right to guaranteed benefits under a government program