This book is designed for a one-semester issues-based general education economics course, and its purpose is to interest the nonbusiness, noneconomics major in what the discipline of economics can do. Students of the "issues approach" will master the basic economic theory necessary to explore a variety of real-world issues. If this is the only economics class they ever take, they will at least gain enough insight to be able to intelligently discuss the way economic theory applies to important issues in the world today.

Until the first edition of this book was published, instructors who chose the issues approach to teaching a one-semester general economics course had to compromise in one of the following ways: they could (1) pick a book that presents the issues but that is devoid of economic theory; (2) pick a book that intertwines the issues with the theory; (3) ask students to buy two books; or (4) place a large number of readings on library reserve.

Each of these alternatives presents problems. If the course is based entirely on an issues text, students will leave with the incorrect impression that economics is a nonrigorous discipline that offers opinions devoid of a theoretical basis. A book that intertwines issues and theory implicitly assumes that all the issues are relevant to all students in the course. In fact, some issues are not relevant to some students and others are relevant only when the issue makes news. For example, at Syracuse my students never understood why farm price supports were interesting, whereas at Indiana State no student that I have met has ever lived in a rent-controlled apartment. Other issues are of interest only at particular times. Oil prices were of little consequence to students during the bulk of the 1990s, but students are very interested today. Student interest in Social Security rose during 2005 when President Bush pushed his version of reform but waned as his approval ratings did. Similarly, the minimum wage was of interest to students in 2007 as the new Democratic Congress passed an increase. Finally, some issues are interesting for a time and then fade, like the interest in antitrust statutes as they applied to Microsoft's behavior in the 1990s. The new Fifth Edition does not include the Antitrust chapter nor does it include the chapters on Head Start or Rent Control. These chapters remain on the Web site and are available for your use. Instead, the new Fifth Edition offers students an ability to access timely material on "The Housing Bubble" and "The Recession of 2007-2009: Causes and Policy Responses". I have also expanded the coverage of international foreign exchange by separating the material from the IMF discussion and giving it its own separate coverage.

The problem associated with using multiple books is the obvious one of expense. Having multiple reserve readings, still a legitimate option, requires a great deal of time on the part of students, teachers, and librarians, and it is usually not convenient for students. The Fifth Edition of this book meets both student and instructor needs simultaneously. By regularly updating the material, regularly adjusting the portfolio of topics, and using a Web platform for "white hot" issues and as an archive of discarded issues, this book allows instructors of economics to keep students interested.

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

Issues in Economics Today includes 8 intensive core theory chapters and 35 shorter issues chapters. The book is designed to allow faculty flexibility in approach. Some colleagues like to intertwine theory and issues while others like to lay the theoretical foundation first before heading into the issues. Some faculty will choose to set a theme for their course and pick issues consistent with that theme while others will let their students decide what issues interest them. There is no right way to use the book except that under no circumstances is it imagined that the entire book be covered.

I believe that an issues-based course must have the virtue of being both timely and flexible. As a result, this book presents a wealth of issues from which instructors or students can pick and choose. This book also has the benefit of having timely Web-available chapters that allow students to study issues as they happen. Between the time the first edition went to press and the fourth edition became available, the accounting scandals of 2002 occurred. During the book's first year the United States went to war in Iraq. Before the third edition hit college bookstores, the housing bubble was of significant concern. It began its deflation as the fourth edition was created. Chapters discussing the economic impact of these events were available within a month of these events. I am committed to providing balanced and timely chapters for the Web so that instructors and students have the latest available information.

There are 35 issues chapters that I have divided into the following categories: Macroeconomic Issues (Chapters 9-14), International Issues (Chapters 15-19), Externalities and Market Failure (Chapters 20-21), Health Issues (Chapters 28-30), Government Solutions to Societal Problems (Chapters 25-27), Price Control Issues (Chapters 22-24), and Miscellaneous Markets (Chapters 31-43). These groupings will be helpful as you navigate through the Contents looking for a particular topic. To help you decide which issues chapters to cover, see the table on pages xxiii–xxiv, entitled "Required Theory Table." It shows at a glance which theory chapters need to be covered before pursuing each of the issues chapters. On page xxii, the table entitled "Issues for Different Course Themes" includes my recommendations for courses that focus on social policy, international issues, election year issues, or business.

The format of this book, as well as the tools I've mentioned, are meant to provide you the maximum flexibility in choosing issues chapters for your course.

NEW TO THE FIFTH EDITION

New Chapters: In its Fifth Edition, Issues in Economics Today introduces three new chapters that examine the housing bubble; the causes and consequences of and responses to the 2007–2009 recession; and foreign exchange rates. The first of these (Chapter 11) places in the book a revised version of the Housing Bubble chapter that has resided on the Web for two editions. It examines the causes of this crisis, from its origins to its effects. The second new chapter (Chapter 12) looks at the recession that began in 2007 focusing enough time on the housing issue that coverage of the Housing Bubble chapter itself seems neither necessary nor redundant and then moves to put the TARP and stimulus package discussions in the context of the time in which they were enacted. The third new chapter (Chapter 16) pulls the foreign exchange discussion out of the chapter devoted to the IMF and gives it a deeper treatment. This new chapter is part of an ongoing commitment to international issues.

FEATURES

• A conversational writing style makes it easier for students not majoring in economics to connect with the material. The book puts students at ease and allows them to feel more confident and open to learning.
• Chapter Outline and Learning Objectives set the stage at the beginning of each chapter to let the student see how the chapter is organized and anticipate the concepts that will be covered.
• Key Terms are defined in the margins, recapped at the end of the chapters, and included in the Glossary.
• Summaries at the end of each chapter reinforce the material that has been covered.
• Issues Chapters You Are Ready For Now are found at the end of each theory chapter, so students can go straight to the issues chapters that interest them once they've mastered the necessary theoretical principles.
• Quiz Yourself presents questions for self-quizzing at the end of each chapter.
• Think about This asks provocative questions that encourage students to think about how economic theories apply to the real world by putting themselves in the economic driver's seat. For example, one Think about This asks, "Suppose you buy a new car. What is the opportunity cost of doing so?" This feature facilitates active learning so that the students will learn the concepts more thoroughly.
• Talk about This includes questions designed to trigger discussion.
• For More Insight See sends the students to Web sites and publications to find additional material on a given topic. Since economic issues are particularly time-sensitive, this feature not only helps students learn to do research on the Web, but also keeps the course as fresh and current as today’s newspaper.

CourseSmart

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Finding your eBook is easy. Visit www.CourseSmart.com and search by title, author, or ISBN.

SUPPLEMENTS

The supplements for Issues in Economics Today provide some wonderful teaching resources for instructors and learning resources for students.

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR

Instructor's Manual/Test Bank
In addition to a traditional outline of each chapter's content and updated Web references to data sources for each chapter, the Instructor's Manual offers key-point icons to emphasize the importance of particular concepts. Another distinctive feature is that each figure is broken into subfigures with explanations that can be offered at each stage. The Test Bank includes 60 to 100 multiple-choice questions for the core theory chapters and 40 to 70 multiple-choice questions for the issues chapters. These questions test students' knowledge of key terms, key concepts, theory and graph recognition, theory and graph application, and numeracy, as well as questions about different explanations given by economists regarding particular economic phenomena.

Test Bank
The Test Bank is available on the text Web site. All chapters of the Fifth Edition, including those currently on the web (Antitrust, Head Start, and Rent Control), are supported by the Test Bank.

PowerPoint Presentations
Narrated PowerPoint Presentations accompany the text, including the Web chapters (Antitrust, Head Start, and Rent Control). The Fifth Edition also includes revised complimentary Narrated PowerPoints, which can be viewed on the book's Web site.

Online Learning Center www.mhhe.com/guell5e
The password-protected Web site contains all of the instructor supplements including the Instructor’s Manual, Test Bank Word files, downloadable PowerPoints, a Digital Image Library containing all the graphs and tables from the text, and grading guidelines for the web-based issues questions.

FOR THE STUDENT

Study Guide
The Study Guide, like the text, is divided into theory chapters and issues chapters, with a slightly different format for each. The theory chapters include the major points of the chapter, a chapter outline, key terms with definitions, and problems. This is followed by a self-test of multiple-choice and true/false questions. The issues chapters include the major points of the chapter, a chapter outline, key terms with definitions, discussion questions, and Web-based questions. Additional material to correspond with the Kick It Up a Notch sections is now available. Answers to all problems are included.

Online Learning Center www.mhhe.com/guell5e
A variety of study aids are offered on the student side of the Web site. These aids include chapter outlines, narrated PowerPoint Presentations, Web-based issues questions, and the Study Guide.