Words From the Wise Economist
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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — When John Kenneth Galbraith expounds on his ideas, he chooses his words carefully, frequently recasting phrases moments after he utters them, as if each sentence were crafted to be a quote for the ages.
Here’s a sampling:
On the lessons learned from the Wall Street crash of 1929 and the merger mania of the 1980s: “There’s no necessary association between intelligence and money.”
On the usefulness of economic predictions: “I do not have a high regard for economic forecasting. I’ve always been cautious about it, partly because people have a wonderful memory for your wrong forecasts, but rarely for your right ones.”
On the role of government serving the needy: “If you’re rich, you can buy books. If you’re poor, you need a library.”
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