What Money Can't Buy

1. How does Michael Sandel support the thesis that "over the past three decades we have drifted from having a market economy to becoming a market society?"

His point is that in a world where everything can be bought and sold, we lose track of why some things shouldn’t be. Therefore, we pass to be a market economy, a valuable and effective tool for organizing productive activity market economies, to a market society it’s a place where almost everything is up for sell, it has become a way of life.

2. What sorts of arguments are offered for and against the assumed proposal of paying young children two dollars for every book they read?

One of the main arguments against paying children for reading was that probably they are going to drive the wrong performance because they are using the wrong incentive and the wrong behavior and they would figure out a way to read stupid books or things that wouldn't really get it what they were trying to change. In addition, another arguments against,  was that you cannot buy passion and love, you cannot develop those with money because those things are priceless they are developed by good parenting good values and mores of the society good teachers and good principals.

On the other hand, there were people who believe this proposal was a good idea for incentivizing young children to read, they believe it will be a way of motiving them to read more despite the fact they do not like to read they will do so just because of money. They think it will be a good jumpstart to help them grow in their love of learning

3. Now, what is your standpoint about cash incentives at school or at home to encourage students to read more books?

I believe it is not a good idea because they are going to expect a reward for everything they do and I don't think that is the real world. What about if they become addicted to the cash and come to expect to be paid anytime they read a book. Therefore, they are going to love reading but in their mind they are going to say because I am going to get money. They are going to read for the love of money not for the love of reading.

4. When Michael Sandel contends that "this tendency of markets and cash incentives of crowding out nonmarket goods, higher goods, can be seen in may spheres of social life, what sort of "higher goods" do you think he is refering to?

Those higher goods could be behavior, values, attitude, sex , friendship and even love, has been debased by the tendency of markets and cash incentives.

5. What kind of nonmaterial goods do you think have been crowded out by market transactions in Colombia?

   I believe some of the nonmaterial goods that have been crowded out by markets here in Colombia are respect, values, health and love, because of corruption, because of the higher increasing demanding in marketing economy, because here if you have money you can afford many things even love, you can have a better quality in health.

6. What should be the role of money and markets in our Colombian society?

The role of money in Colombia should be for improving the quality of people’s life, to invest money in health, and try to export more our national products.