We live surrounded by a systematic appeal to a dream world which all mature, scientific reality would reject. We, quite literally, advertise our commitment to immaturity, mendacity and profound gullibility. It is as the hallmark of the culture. And it is justified as being economically indispensable.

Over the span of man's history, although a phenomenal amount of education, persuasion, indoctrination and incantation have been devoted to the effort, ordinary people have never been quite persuaded that toil is as agreeable as its alternatives. Thus to take increased well-being partly in the form of more goods and partly in the form of more leisure is unquestionably rational.

Economists, on the whole, think well of what they do themselves and much less well of what their professional colleagues do.

There can be no question, however, that prolonged commitment to mathematical exercises in economics can be damaging. It leads to the atrophy of judgement and intuition. . .

Few people at the beginning of the nineteenth century needed an adman to tell them what they wanted.

In economics it is a far, far wiser thing to be right than to be consistent

If you feed enough oats to the horse, some will pass through to feed the sparrows (referring to "trickle down" economics).