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♪ [music] ♪

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- [Tyler] Now what are 
the key macro ideas?

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We're still on like two words
so the biggie here,

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"prosperity matters."

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Sounds trivial, but a lot 
of people actually deny it,

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though I'm not sure 
they really mean what they're saying.

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They'll say something like,

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"Oh, you know, life was much better
back in 1910," or back whenever.

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But I think there's a lot 
of evidence from economics.

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It can't tell you ethically 
that a wealthier country

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is better than a poorer country,

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but it can tell you that most 
of the things people want,

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they get more of it
in wealthier countries.

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And I don't just mean money --
if you look at health,

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infant mortality, the ability 
to choose a career you want,

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women's rights, minority rights,
political liberty, democracy,

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civil liberties...
air conditioning! Right?

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You can't live 
without air conditioning.

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These are all correlated 
with prosperity.

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And I know correlated 
doesn't mean cause.

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The causation runs both ways,
and it runs through third

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and other variables.

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But the simple point 
that prosperity is very important.

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There's a lot we want to do.

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You have to actually pay the bills.

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There is a budget constraint,

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and the way you meet 
that budget constraint

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is to be a wealthy nation.

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People will have different goals 
in politics and with their lives,

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but basically the wealthier nations

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do a better job 
of meeting those goals,

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and you can look 
at other economic evidence.

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Again, this is not 
a final ethical judgement,

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but the simple question
if people, say, are leaving Syria

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because life in Syria has 
become too difficult.

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Where is it ideally they want
to go when they have the choice?

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For the most part, they prefer
to go to wealthier nations.

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So in Europe, 
the attraction was Germany,

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one of the wealthier nations.

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For migrants in general, Canada, 
Australia, United States,

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United Kingdom, Switzerland,
wealthy relatively free countries,

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of course are where 
people want to be.

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♪ [music] ♪

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- [Narrator] Click here 
to watch the next episode

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of Tyler Cowen’s 
"9 Big Ideas of Economics."

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Or, maybe you’re 
not ready to move on

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and instead want
to learn more about this idea.

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Then you should 
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