# No peeking -- test your basic econ facts **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2010, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987 "2010-10-13T12:48:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/41 "2010-10-13T18:31:14Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > The more I think about it, the more it occurs to me that we still don’t know the answer for #1. We know how many hourly workers made the minimum wage or less, but presumably there are also some salaried workers who did (though not as many). The questions also ill-phrased, since there are ten or so States with higher minimum wage then the Federal minimum wage. So do we count minimum wage workers in CA, where the minimum wage is higher then the federal level? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_fun_ball/32/17664_2.png) [@Happy\_Fun\_Ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Fun_Ball)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/42 "2010-10-13T18:35:54Z")
Just guessing: 1. 5% 2. 10% 3. 1% ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/43 "2010-10-13T19:56:24Z")
Can’t speak for sales, but profit and OH numbers for construction contracts typically are 10% & 15%, respectively. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/44 "2010-10-13T20:05:11Z")
1. minium wage workers: 6% 2. profits vary by industry, before or after taxes; around 5% 3. less than 2% ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/45 "2010-10-13T20:37:25Z")
So, is there a point to this exercise, aside from showing that these numbers are really stand-ins for much more complex statistics? Some proposed policy you’d like to talk about that having a consensus agreement on these would be a helpful baseline for debate? These numbers change daily, and with a concept as nebulous as “profit” it’s hard to say if they exist in any real sense to begin with. So what does knowing them, as much as one can know them, buy us for the purposes of this thread? Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/46 "2010-10-13T20:40:01Z")
I’d like to point out that none of these are basic economics facts. These are, at best, measurements of the current economic situation in this country. A basic economic fact would be something like “Given constant demand, as supply of a commodity decreases, the price increases”. And on the second question, I’d like to know what weighting the average is supposed to have. Are we averaging over all companies? Companies by number of employees? All transactions? All dollars spent? ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2010, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/47 "2010-10-13T20:51:20Z")
Those data are a snapshot of various statistics. They imply no more knowledge about economics than the question “What was the raccoon population of New York in 2009?” implies knowledge of zoology. A basic econ fact might be along the lines of: “When and where did the first industrial revolution start?” ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2010, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/48 "2010-10-14T00:09:35Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Without looking it up (or peeking at prior posters) please post your best guesses: > > 1. What percentage of workers in the US earn only minimum wage? > > 2. As an overall average, what percentage of sales dollars are profits? > > 3. What is the current inflation rate? 1. I remember a figure of about 3%, but that’s from a long time ago and it may be different now. 2. Very low. Low single digits. 3. In the neighborhood of one percent. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/49 "2010-10-14T00:39:50Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Without looking it up (or peeking at prior posters) please post your best guesses: > > 1. What percentage of workers in the US earn only minimum wage? > > 2. As an overall average, what percentage of sales dollars are profits? > > 3. What is the current inflation rate? 1. No freakin’ idea 2. No goddam idea 3. Absolutely no freakin’ goddam idea Just curious - why is it important that we know or guess these items without looking them up? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2010, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/50 "2010-10-14T00:47:34Z")
1. 15%. Since the question is “workers” not “adults” there are probably a lot of high school and college kids earning these rates. 2. 5% but only due to creative accounting that shifts profits into overhead 3. 2% ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2010, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987/51 "2010-10-14T00:51:18Z")
> [@bricker](#): > > without looking it up (or peeking at prior posters) please post your best guesses: > > 1. What percentage of workers in the us earn only minimum wage? > > 2. As an overall average, what percentage of sales dollars are profits? > > 3. What is the current inflation rate? 1. 10% 2. 1% 3. 1% [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-peeking-test-your-basic-econ-facts/556987.md?page=2)