Politically speaking, it's always easier to shell out money for a disaster that has already happened, with clearly identifiable victims, than to… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
You might think of consumption as a fairly passive activity, but buying new products and services is actually pretty risky, at least… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
But, if recent history has taught us anything, it’s that self-regulation doesn’t work in finance, and that worries about reputation are a… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
If private-equity firms are as good at remaking companies as they claim, they don't need tax loopholes to make money. — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Behavioral economists have shown that a sizable percentage of people are willing to pay real money to punish people who are taking… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
The financial crisis of 2008 was not caused by investment banks betting against the housing market in 2007. It was caused by… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
This intelligence, or what I'll call "the wisdom of crowds," is at work in the world in many different guises. It's the… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Art collecting has traditionally been the domain of wealthy individuals in search of rewards beyond the purely financial. — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
It's a familiar truism that at any one moment, financial markets are dominated by either fear or greed. But the healthiest markets… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Disasters redistribute money from taxpayers to construction workers, from insurance companies to homeowners, and even from those who once lived in the… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Lack of confidence, sometimes alternating with unrealistic dreams of heroic success, often leads to procrastination, and many studies suggest that procrastinators are self-handicappers: rather… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Downsizing itself is an inevitable part of any creatively destructive economy. — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
In the business world, bad news is usually good news - for somebody else. — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
You might think of consumption as a fairly passive activity, but buying new products and services is actually pretty risky, at least if you… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Corporations hope that the right concept will turn things around overnight. This is what you might call the crash-diet approach: starve yourself for a… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Instead of mindlessly tossing billions at or taking billions from the Net as such, investors should be spending their time making sure that it's… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
If you thought the advent of the Internet, the spread of cheap and efficient information technology, and the growing fragmentation of the consumer market… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
The financial crisis of 2008 was not caused by investment banks betting against the housing market in 2007. It was caused by the fact… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
A consumer-finance agency is a good thing, but it would do well to teach consumers a simple lesson: if you don't understand the deal… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
What corporations fear is the phenomenon now known, rather inelegantly, as 'commoditization.' What the term means is simply the conversion of the market for… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
Making loans and fighting poverty are normally two of the least glamorous pursuits around, but put the two together and you have an economic… — James Surowiecki Copy Share Image
