Gore Vidal, the American writer, once described the American economic system as 'free enterprise for the poor and … - Ha-Joon Chang

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Men are all right for friends, but as soon as you marry them they turn into cranky old fathers, even the wild ones. They begin to tell you what's sensible and what's foolish, and want you to stick at home all the time. I prefer to be foolish when I feel like it, and be accountable to nobody.

Ha-Joon Chang

Gore Vidal, the American writer, once described the American economic system as 'free enterprise for the poor and socialism for the rich'. Macroeconomic policy on the global scale is a bit like that. It is Keynesianism for the rich countries and monetarism for the poor.

American, Country, Rich Countries, Socialism, System, Vidal

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Making rich people richer doesn't make the rest of us richer.

Make, People, Rest, Rich, Wealth

Once you realize that trickle-down economics does not work, you will see the excessive tax cuts for the rick as what they are -- a simple upward redistribution of income, rather than a way to make all of us richer, as we were told.

Cutting, Doe, Economics, Simple, Tax, Work

As South Korea shows, active participation in international trade does not require free trade. Indeed, had South Korea pursued free trade and not promoted infant industries, it would not have become a major trading nation. It would still be exporting raw materials (e. g. , tungsten ore, fish, seaweed) or low-technology, low-price products (e. g. , textiles, garments, wigs made with human hair) that used to be its main export items in the 1960s.

1960S, Hair, Korea, Ore, Require, Technology

Equality of opportunity is not enough. Unless we create an environment where everyone is guaranteed some minimum capabilities through some guarantee of minimum income, education, and healthcare, we cannot say that we have fair competition. When some people have to run a 100 metre race with sandbags on their legs, the fact that no one is allowed to have a head start does not make the race fair. Equality of opportunity is absolutely necessary but not sufficient in building a genuinely fair and efficient society.

Equality, Everyone, Opportunity, Race, Running, Start

The best way to boost the economy is to redistribute wealth downward, as poorer people tend to spend a higher proportion of their income.

Income, People, Proportion, Tend, Way