7. At the end of the 17th century, England instituted a tax based on the number of windows a person had. Parliament wanted to force those who were wealthier to pay more, but did not have any way to enforce an income tax of the sort we have. At the time, however, windows were a luxury item, so there was a high correlation between wealth and the number of windows a person had. Hence, Parliament taxed windows. What unintended consequence resulted from this tax? (Hint: How could the wealthy avoid the tax?)
8. Critics of drivers' education programs claim that the programs do not reduce the number of accidents that teenagers are involved in. How could this program make teenagers safer drivers and yet increase accidents? (Comment: Once you see the logic here, you will be able to see that a great many other situations are similar. Will making cars more fuel-efficient reduce the amount of gasoline used? Will encouraging high school students to us condoms reduce the number of teenagers becoming pregnant? Will making cars safer reduce the number of injuries and deaths from traffic accidents? After a tragic death in a national park that was the result of two campers getting lost, the parents of one proposed that all people going into the wilderness be equipped with cell phones. Can you be sure that giving out cell phones to people going out into the wilderness would reduce problems? Could it increase them?)
(Hint: if you cannot see the logic in any of the above examples, consider this one. Many of the fiercest critics of smoking strongly oppose any attempt to develop a safer cigarette. Why would they take this position?)
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