One of the peculiarities of economics is that it still rests on a behavioral assumption-rational utility maximization-that has long since been rejected by sociologists and psychologists.
Lester ThurowIf a group of people has no sense where they came from-it is difficult for them to have a sense where they should go.
Lester ThurowA competitive world offers two possibilities. You can lose. Or, if you want to win, you can change.
Lester ThurowWe've believed for 50 years that the Japanese are small Americans who wanted to be like us. They are not.
Lester ThurowThere is nothing antithetical in American history, culture, or traditions to teamwork. Teams were important in America's history - wagon trains conquered the West, men working together on the assembly line in American industry conquered the world, a successful national strategy and a lot of teamwork put an American on the moon first (and thus fare, last). But American mythology extols only the individual...In America, halls of fame exist for almost every conceivable activity, but nowhere do Americans raise monuments in praise of teamwork.
Lester Thurow