Paul Krugman Quote by Kathryn Schulz
““Still, one could argue—and many did—that Greenspan, at least, had no business being quite so shocked. Over the years, countless people had challenged his deregulatory dogma, including (to name just a few) Joseph Stiglitz and Paul Krugman, both Nobel Prize–winning economists, and Brooksley Born, who was head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission from 1996 to 1999. Born eventually became something of a Cassandra figure for the crisis, since she repeatedly called for regulating the market for derivatives, those ultracomplex financial products that eventually helped bring down the economy. Those calls were silenced when Greenspan, along with then-Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and then-Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Arthur Levitt, took the extraordinary step of convincing Congress to pass legislation forbidding Born’s agency from taking any action for the duration of her term.””
About This Quote
Source Article: The Cassandra of the Financial Crisis, The New Yorker, 2012
Regulators ignored warnings about complex derivatives, leading to crisis; dissenting voices were silenced.
In simple terms: Ignored warnings caused crisis.
Key Takeaway
Heed expert warnings to prevent systemic risk.
Themes
finance
regulation
risk management
Mood
critical
serious
Type
analytical
historical
When to use this quote
- government
- financial institutions
- investors
- policy makers
Key Concepts
cautionary tale
policy failure
Questions to Reflect On
- Why are warnings often ignored?
- How can dissent be protected?
A Different Perspective
Political and economic pressures can suppress dissent.
![“Frank Rich, Paul Krugman, Maureen Dowd, a whole host of brilliant, courageous critics say all kinds of things, and he [Barack Obama] treats them with respect. They get invited to the White House. I say the same thing, he talks to me like I'm a Cub Scout.” quote by Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/bea/cornel-west-708_all-kinds_frank-rich-paul-krugman-maureen-dowd-a-w_3152598.jpg)
