Goodness!

The essential, first-order or pure concept of " public goods " is whatever we benefit from that is " non-excludable " and " non-rivalrous. " That means you can use it without paying for it, and if you use it, it ' s still there for others. An example, at least for the time being, is the oxygen in the air. Back in the good old paleolithic, there was a lot more of that. Basically, the land and the water and the plants and animals were there for the taking, and there was usually plenty so rivalry was uncommon. Of course, this only worked within your own tribe -- sometimes people of different tribes tried exclusion and rivalry, and even killed each other. But you get the idea.For better or for worse, nature for the most part doesn ' t work that way any more. Land is now a commodity - it is owned, bought and sold, and the law says you can exclude people from your property. The products of the land are owned as well. Most public goods nowadays are actually created by humans, and they may also be thought of as goods and services with very large positive externalities. A classic example is a lighthouse. It was worth it to the local port authorities to build it and maintain it -- perhaps a joint investment of merchants, and/or navigators, or the king who stood to gain from taxing them and dispatching his navies more safely -- but every sailor benefits, even if they ' re just passing by. A comparable example today is the Global Positioning System.  The point is, the Free Mark...
Source: Stayin' Alive - Category: American Health Source Type: blogs