Our modern democratic ideal is based on the hope that inequalities will be based on merit more than inheritance or luck.

Without precisely defined sources, methods, and concepts, it is possible to see absolutely everything and its opposite.

There is one great advantage to being an academic economist in France: here, economists are not highly respected in the academic and intellectual world or by political and financial elites. Hence they must set aside their contempt for other disciplines and their absurd claim to greater scientific legitimacy, despite the fact that they know almost nothing about anything.

When inequality gets to an extreme, it is completely useless for growth.

Contrary to a tenacious myth, France is not owned by California pension funds or the Bank of China, any more than the United States belongs to Japanese and German investors. The fear of getting into such a predicament is so strong today that fantasy often outstrips reality. The reality is that inequality with respect to capital is a far greater domestic issue than it is an international one.

It's important to realize that innovation and growth in itself are not sufficient to moderate inequality of wealth.

We want capitalism and market forces to be the slave of democracy rather than the opposite.