Alexandria Ocasio-Ortez has strongly objected to others calling her proposals “giving away free stuff.” She says the goods aren’t “free stuff”; they are “public goods.” She added, "I never want to hear the word, or the term, 'free stuff,' ever again." The Washington Examiner, Washington Times, and Fox News tell the story. AOC is from New York, but I didn't find a story in the NY Times, whose motto is “All the News That’s Fit to Print.” I guess they judged it "not fit to print."
The meaning of public good in economics is something like what AOC says. However, the good being something that can be used or enjoyed "without paying for it" is part of the definition. So what she proposes is both a public good and "free stuff" to the users. What she proposes isn't "free stuff" to those who pay for it, taxpayers. Wikipedia says AOC majored in economics (and international relations) at Boston University. Maybe she forgot about or was sleeping when that phrase "without paying for it" was used. 😊
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