I've always argued that this country has benefited immensely from the fact that we draw people from all over the world.
Alan GreenspanRead
We really can't forecast all that well, and yet we pretend that we can, but we really can't.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the uncertainty of predicting the future while acknowledging our tendency to act as if we can do so.
Alan Greenspan highlights the inherent unpredictability of events and decisions in life. Despite our attempts to project future outcomes with confidence, the reality is that our ability to foresee developments is limited. This observation invites humility and caution in our projections and decisions, reminding us that uncertainty is a fundamental aspect of existence.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about economic forecasting to underline its challenges.
I've always argued that this country has benefited immensely from the fact that we draw people from all over the world.
There's no other job in public life that is like chairman of the Fed.
Since 1948 I have spent every single day thinking how the economic and political worlds have changed.
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.
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.
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.
Teach us, O Lord, the disciplines of patience, for to wait is often harder than to work.
Jesters do oft prove prophets.
To be truly visionary we have to root our imagination in our concrete reality while simultaneously imagining possibilities beyond that reality.
As long as anything in this world means anything to you, your freedom is only a word. You are like a bird that is held by a leash; you can only fly so far.
We know accurately only when we know little, with knowledge doubt increases.
Your inner purpose is to awaken. It is as simple as that. You share that purpose with every other person on the planet - because it is the purpose of humanity.
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