What can be learned from this costly and disheartening situation?
A few days ago, my car window was smashed into a million pieces by some callous thief and broken into, leaving me frustrated and scared.
As I was getting out of work, I turn around the corner to see my driver’s window completely gone. My heart sank. Then I started to panic a little. What do I do now?
My first thought was, why me? There were more expensive cars parked next to mine like BMWs and Mercedes but why target my 2009 Cadillac SUV?
Even more confusing was the motive behind breaking into my car. I had no valuables in my car and the only thing worth taking is my aux cord or the penny and nickel laying about, but none of those were taken.
In fact, whoever did this took nothing but decided it was worth their time and risk getting caught to smash into an almost empty car. I barely have anything in my car for this reason so I don’t give criminals a reason to break-in.
Even though they still smashed my window, it’s still wise to take precaution and reduce your chances of becoming a statistic.
Here’s some advice: never leave your phone or other valuables (especially guns) in your car even if it’s in your glovebox, criminals can still force it open. And don’t give the impression that you might be hiding something underneath things like piles of clothes, keep your car clutter-free or hide it in the trunk. Also, park in well-lit areas with lots of people.
But how does this relate to economics?
The important lesson we can learn from my personal experience is a prime example of the broken window fallacy, a parable by French economist, Frédéric Bastiat.
Bastiat gives an example of a shopkeeper whose son breaks his window and now has to shell out a pretty penny for repairs. A bunch of spectators witness the shattered glass and defend the damage by claiming it keeps the window repairman in business.
Likewise, my car window was broken but the auto shop now has my business. At first glance, this seems beneficial like a silver lining and it does give the auto shop more money. But we must ask the question, at what cost and who’s paying for it?
Are broken windows a net gain to society?
Does destruction help or hinder society’s progress?
The answer seems like an obvious “No” but people still argue in favor of destruction since it creates jobs and helps the auto shop stay in business.
However, it was at my expense and the $200 that went towards the new window could’ve been used for my wants and needs. I needed that money for gas, food, and a new pair of shoes to replace my worn out ones. I also wanted a skincare set for my acne-ridden face, and I could’ve had all those things and an intact window but instead I’m left with just a window and nothing else.
Multiple businesses and local gas stations and I could’ve benefitted more compared to just the auto shop.
In the words of Bastiat, “destruction is not profit.”