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Here we present our “Basic Model,” a simple two-good buy-sell strategic market game economy upon which all others in the book are based. The model uses a storable consumable money, and we begin with some comments regarding this kind of money. The model itself has two types of trader, with a continuum of each type. Traders of Type 1 are endowed with money and good #1; traders of Type 2 with money and good #2. Each trader solves her own utility maximization problem, with square root utility function and one “cash flow” constraint. The amount of cash the traders start with determines whether or not they solve their optimizations with the constraint holding loosely and attaining efficient trade, or alternatively the constraint holding tightly and trade inefficient. This allows us to define precisely the concepts of “enough money” and “not enough money” (as well as “enough money well-distributed” and “enough money badly-distributed”) in the economy. We completely analytically solve the model for its equilibria, and provide a sensitivity analysis examining what happens to prices, trade, and consumption as m (the amount of cash endowed collectively to each trader type) ranges from infinity down to zero.

The Basic Model from chapter 3 is altered in two ways. First, the trader types have unequal cash endowments. Second, there is now a money market, whereby Type 1 traders can lend money to Type 2 traders. This means that Type 2 traders have an extra constraint (a “budget constraint”) in their utility maximizations, requiring them to pay back their loans at the end of the game. Again we solve the model, but this time there are three solution zones: 1) where the traders’ cash flow constraints hold loosely; 2) where they hold tightly but the Type 2 traders’ budget constraints hold loosely; and 3) where all constraints hold tightly. We also distinguish among an “enough money well distributed,” an “enough money badly distributed,” and a “not enough money” case in this model.

Hokkien or Minnan is the common language of the majority of ‘local’ ethnic-Chinese in Taiwan and Singapore. However, Hokkien has been elevated to the status of ‘national language’, as ‘Taiwanese’, for Taiwan citizens who desire an independent Taiwan. In contrast, Hokkien has become a language of the marginalized in Singapore who have failed to achieve academic success in its English and Mandarin, bilingual education system. Hokkien is thus used for comedy effects in Singaporean cinema, especially in the works of local filmmaker, Jack Neo. Consequently, when a Taiwanese film with Hokkien dialogue, embracing a nationalist sentiment, crosses over to Singapore, it is misread as signifying the ‘uncouth’, the ‘uneducated’, producing comedic effects, drawing denigrating laughter, as in the case of Singaporean reception of the Taiwanese film, Buddha Bless America. Such instances illustrate the complexities of the use and politics of Chinese languages which is elided in the use of the singular term ‘Chinese’ and ‘Chineseness’ in the English language.