The economic illiteracy of Americans — including most who have taken one or more college Economics classes — can be breathtaking. But instead of always complaining about this malady, I decided that with this article, I’d here offer a one-lesson business accounting course that SHOULD be taught in high school (if not at home).

Herewith, a cram course on the fundamental math of a retail business — specifically a fast-food establishment. And why almostallsuch culinary establishments will be cutting back their hours of operation — making that late-night fast-food eatery largely a thing of the past.

Every business has two kinds of costs:

1. Fixed Costs— These are costs that don’t change much from month to month. At the top of the list of fixed costs is usually property costs — mortgage (or rent), taxes, insurance. Add to that franchise fees, accounting cost, some insurance costs, etc.

2. Variable Costs— These costs primarily consist of the cost of goods sold, utilities, franchise percentage payments and… Read More

“Robots will steal your job, but that’s ok.” Federico Pistono Anyone who has recently driven through Mountain View, in the heart of Silicon Valley, is likely to have had the memorable experience of sharing the road with a car that has nobody inside. Google’s “autonomous cars” are being tested there, and apparently they drive better than people do – they are smart, safe, sober, and tireless. They have the potential to eliminate 3.6 million full-time jobs in the United States. Anyone purchasing materials at a Home Depot store, or their local grocery chain store, without interacting with a human cashier, has seen the future of retail employment. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 3.4 million people working as retail cashiers in the United States. Most of those jobs are also at risk. What about agriculture? New robots are coming that can do anything a farm worker can do. As noted in this report, “Robot harvests on the horizon; farm owners predict machines will revolutionize costs,” a machine is now being tested … Read More