Stories from Mansion 28: McEconomics

Dear Readers,

I would first like to thank a few friends who inspired the topic for today (you know who you are).

McDonald's... So, many things come to mind when this fast food chain is mentioned. I think back to my childhood years when I would cry to visit the Golden Arches and partake of its semi-permeable chicken and beef products... Anyway, this fast food giant is all about economically making it big. How big?

Big enough to warrant a "super sized" documentary. (One of my favorite films...)

Big enough that The Economist puts out a yearly comparison of Big Mac prices in different countries as an illustration of "purchasing-power parity."

(Note: in 2011, a Big Mac in Israel cost 15.90 shekels. A Big Mac in the U.S. cost 4.07 USD. The exchange rate between USD and shekels was 3.4, meaning, that a "U.S" Big Mac was bought for 13.83 shekels. One could, theoretically, export U.S. Big Macs to Israel and try to make a profit. Now, the overhead costs will most likely exceed any revenue made in this venture... but, a Canadian Big Mac could be bought for 4.73 Canadian dollars (4.49 USD)... so, we could cut some of those costs by doing the same export of US Big Macs with our much nearer neighbors to the north...)