QuoteProject
Every economy exists, no matter what the level of democracy, has elements of crony capitalism. It's - given human nature and given the democratic structures, which we all, I assume, adhere to, that is an inevitable consequence.
Alan Greenspan
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

Crony capitalism is an unavoidable aspect of every economy influenced by human nature and democratic structures.

The quote by Alan Greenspan suggests that regardless of how democratic a society may be, elements of crony capitalism will always persist. This phenomenon stems from human nature and the inherent flaws in political and economic systems that allow for favoritism and corruption, leading to the conclusion that crony capitalism is an inevitable consequence for all economies.

Themes

Crony CapitalismEconomyDemocracyHuman NaturePolitics

In practice

Example use cases

During a lecture on economic systems, one might use this quote to illustrate the challenges of maintaining pure democracy.

More from Alan Greenspan

I've always argued that this country has benefited immensely from the fact that we draw people from all over the world.
Alan GreenspanRead
There's no other job in public life that is like chairman of the Fed.
Alan GreenspanRead
Since 1948 I have spent every single day thinking how the economic and political worlds have changed.
Alan GreenspanRead
Most high-income people in our country do not realize that their incomes are being subsidized by their protection from competition from highly skilled people who are prevented from immigrating to the United States. But we need such skills in order to staff our productive economy, so that the standard of living for Americans as a whole can grow.
Alan GreenspanRead
I don't know where the stock market is going, but I will say this, that if it continues higher, this will do more to stimulate the economy than anything we've been talking about today or anything anybody else was talking about.
Alan GreenspanRead
I do not understand where the backing of Bitcoin is coming from. There is no fundamental issue of capabilities of repaying it in anything which is universally acceptable, which is either intrinsic value of the currency or the credit or trust of the individual who is issuing the money, whether it's a government or an individual.
Alan GreenspanRead

Similar quotes

As soon as the recovery is well under way, we need to set up a long-term plan to reduce the structural deficit and make sure we are not leaving a mountain of debt for the next generation.
Barack ObamaRead
The natural effect of low interest is to increase trade and industry; because undertakings of every kind can be prosecuted with greater advantage.
Alexander HamiltonRead
The proper goal of an economic democracy agenda is to replace the global suicide economy ruled by rapacious and unaccountable global corporations with a planetary system of local living economies comprised of human-scale enterprise rooted in the communities they serve and locally owned by the people whose wellbeing depends on them.
David KortenRead
Why do we fully tax some kinds of income from capital, like interest and dividends; partially tax other kinds like capital gains; defer tax on other kinds, like IRAs; and impose no tax at all on still other types of capital income, like interest on municipal bonds? This simply is not rational. These distinctions don't have any inherent logic.
Bill BradleyRead
The failure of Lehman Brothers demonstrated that liquidity provision by the Federal Reserve would not be sufficient to stop the crisis; substantial fiscal resources were necessary.
Ben BernankeRead
Eviction is part of a business model at the bottom of the market.
Matthew DesmondRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.