I believe that the only important structural obstacles to world prosperity are the obsolete doctrines that clutter the minds of men.

These days, however, the main problem comes from the right - from conservatives who, unlike most economists, really do think that the free market is always right - to such an extent that they refuse to believe even the most overwhelming scientific evidence if it seems to suggest a justification for government action.

On the political as on the economic front it's important not to fall into the "not as bad as" trap. High unemployment isn't O.K. just because it hasn't hit 1933 levels; ominous political trends shouldn’t be dismissed just because there’s no Hitler in sight.

The habit of disguising ideology as expertise has created a deficit of legitimacy.

So what are the effects of increasing minimum wages? Any Econ 101 student can tell you the answer: The higher wage reduces the quantity of labor demanded, and hence leads to unemployment.

But Wall Street people are in fact very smart; they're funny, they're not company men who work their way up the chain.

Politics determines who has the power, not who has the truth.