Veronique de Rugy on the seen and unseen

Peering past the obvious in order to get a more complete picture is what adults do when running their lives and managing households or business affairs. It's what good economists do when analyzing public policies. And it's what Frederic Bastiat did with unmatched skill and style more than two centuries ago. Unfortunately, it's not what most politicians tend to do today.

~ Veronique de Rugy, "As Bastiat Would Say, Peer Past the Obvious With Pandemic Policies," Reason.com,  July 2, 2020

David Hale on the need for government to work with business

What you've got to have is a group of civil servants, politicians and businessmen working together who can get everything pulling together in the same direction.  Let's have the private sector play the really critical role of making the investments and seeking out the markets -- but feeling as if it has the full support of the system behind it so they can take a five-year view.

~ David Hale, chief economist, Kemper Financial Services, "A Top Economist Frets About '80s Hangover," Investor's Daily, February 1, 1990

David Hale on the long-term view of Japan vs. short-termism of Corporate America

We have a tendency to emphasize short-term reward and not long-term benefits, and to view the role of a corporate sector as strictly economic and not understand that it has human dimensions.  The Japanese recognize their corporate sector to be a kind of community, which in turn commands a high level of loyalty from people.  Americans view their corporations as a place they go from 9 to 5.

~ David Hale, chief economist, Kemper Financial Services, "A Top Economist Frets About '80s Hangover," Investor's Daily, February 1, 1990