John Kenneth Galbraith: RIP

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

RIP to one of my favorite political economists. his wisdom will be missed in these days of dubyanomics.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Sunday, 30 April 2006 03:41 (twenty years ago)

among his many great quotes (one which certain ILXors should take to heart):

"There is no hope for liberals if they seek only to imitate conservatives, and no function either," Galbraith wrote in a 1992 article in Modern Maturity, a publication of the American Association of Retired Persons.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Sunday, 30 April 2006 03:43 (twenty years ago)

Wow, that is a true loss, and I mean that much more sincerely than I usually mean it. How many liberal thinkers, economists and writers are there of his caliber?

― Abbadavid Berman (Hurting), Sunday, 30 April 2006 03:51 (twenty years ago)

A great man, definitely.

― someone let this mitya out! (mitya), Sunday, 30 April 2006 03:53 (twenty years ago)

none, last hurrah of keynes?

― anthony easton (anthony), Sunday, 30 April 2006 03:53 (twenty years ago)

the (somewhat monstrous) nyt obit. rip.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Sunday, 30 April 2006 04:01 (twenty years ago)

RIP. I really need to read some Galbraith.

― Cathy (Cathy), Sunday, 30 April 2006 07:53 (twenty years ago)

In "The Great Crash 1929," he rattled the complacent, recalled the mistakes of an earlier day and suggested that some were being repeated as the book appeared, in 1955. Mr. Galbraith testified at a Senate hearing and said that another crash was inevitable. The stock market dropped sharply that day, and he was widely blamed.

Ho ho ho. This is a great book, though, one of my smartest friends was reading it (and telling everyone to read it) 6-7 years ago when it was all happening again.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Sunday, 30 April 2006 07:57 (twenty years ago)

my dad's favorite economist/political theorist/guiding light. RIP.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Sunday, 30 April 2006 11:33 (twenty years ago)

"One of my greatest pleasures in my writing has come from the thought that perhaps my work might annoy someone of comfortably pretentious position. Then comes the realization that such people rarely read."

― teeny (teeny), Sunday, 30 April 2006 13:03 (twenty years ago)

I just remembered that I once read a history of economics he wrote and I can hardly remember a thing from it (for which I blame myself, not him, since he's certainly a good and interesting writer).

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Sunday, 30 April 2006 13:06 (twenty years ago)

I'd recommend a listen to his 1966 Reith lecture.

― Momus (Momus), Sunday, 30 April 2006 13:16 (twenty years ago)

(One pleasure of that apparently joyless lecture is listening out for his ultra-dry Tom Lehrer-like sense of humour: he'll slip in a dark, sardonic remark like "in the United States faith in private enterprise would be mentioned in any Book of Common Prayer".)

― Momus (Momus), Sunday, 30 April 2006 13:24 (twenty years ago)

Wage and price fixing "stands in relation to modern business theory very much as does prostitution to the theory of business management". (Extremely dry tone.)

― Momus (Momus), Sunday, 30 April 2006 13:27 (twenty years ago)

three years pass...

Reading Great Crash now - quite good.

― pithfork (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 30 December 2009 04:53 (sixteen years ago)

Occurs to me that the problem is that people always read this book AFTER a crash.

― pithfork (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 30 December 2009 05:04 (sixteen years ago)

one year passes...

reading 'the new industrial state' now. it's a great read -- galbraith is the only economic historian i've ever been able to finish a real book by.

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Wednesday, 16 November 2011 22:32 (fourteen years ago)

I got the Library of America edition a few months ago during Borders' clearance sale. I read The Great Crash in one afternoon -- it's that compelling.

― lumber up, limbaugh down (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 16 November 2011 22:33 (fourteen years ago)

are there any other economic guys as readable as galbraith?

i read hayek's 'road to serfdom' back when i was in college and all my libertarian friends were referencing it during every argument. it's a real slog, i think.

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Wednesday, 16 November 2011 22:40 (fourteen years ago)

The only Hayek I've read was his 1960 or thereabouts essay on conservatism.

― lumber up, limbaugh down (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 16 November 2011 22:40 (fourteen years ago)

one year passes...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGSID_Uyw7w

― Gukbe, Saturday, 13 July 2013 04:34 (twelve years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.