What We Do in the Shadows — Night Market

What We Do In the Shadows is a mockumentary that follows Nadja, three other vampires, and their family who live in present-day Staten Island. In this episode, the wraiths employed at Nadja’s vampire nightclub begin to agitate for better working conditions. In pursuit of a rare substance that will squash the wraith labor movement, Nadja goes to the night market—an open-air market organized and frequented by witches, demons, and other mythical creatures. Because the market runs on the barter system, Nadja has to make many trades and spend a lot of time haggling with others to get what she seeks.

Thank you to Megan Kirts for the scene suggestion and clip summary!

Trading a Paperclip for a House

 

Kyle MacDonald started with a red paperclip and ended up with a house. Trade and barter requires a double coincidence of wants, but Kyle was able to find people willing to give up something he valued more than his holdings. Mutually beneficial exchange makes both parties better off. This is a great clip to start the process of discussing why trading can grow an economy and why centrally planned economies are harder to coordinate.

Thanks to @AlcovyEconomics on Twitter for the clip!

The Little Rascals — Two Pickles

You don’t like pickles, but your friend does? That works out well for these two as Buckwheat buys Porky’s pickle from him for 2 cents. What a quick example for a mutually beneficial transactions.

Thailand’s Mae Klong Train Market

The local train comes through the market a few times each day, but that doesn’t stop local shops from selling their produce. The resources are used so efficiently in this village that the train runs right through the middle of the market and then the market re-establishes itself after the train passes.

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