A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often read more

A man with a surplus can control circumstances, but a man without a surplus is controlled by them, and often has no opportunity to exercise judgment.

Sell cheap and tell the truth.

Sell cheap and tell the truth.

The most important benefit of population size and growth is the increase it brings to the stock of useful knowledge. read more

The most important benefit of population size and growth is the increase it brings to the stock of useful knowledge. Minds matter economically as much as, or more than, hands or mouths.

Fortune has something of the nature of a woman. If she is too intensely wooed, she commonly goes the further read more

Fortune has something of the nature of a woman. If she is too intensely wooed, she commonly goes the further away.

The budget evolved from a management tool into an obstacle to management.

The budget evolved from a management tool into an obstacle to management.

Every era has a currency that buys souls. In some the currency is pride, in others it is hope, in read more

Every era has a currency that buys souls. In some the currency is pride, in others it is hope, in still others it is a holy cause. There are of course times when hard cash will buy souls, and the remarkable thing is that such times are marked by civility, tolerance, and the smooth working of everyday life.

The "human condition" is always to push forward for the better and economics is the study of that process.

The "human condition" is always to push forward for the better and economics is the study of that process.

Not understanding the process of a spontaneously-ordered economy goes hand-in-hand with not understanding the creation of resources and wealth. And read more

Not understanding the process of a spontaneously-ordered economy goes hand-in-hand with not understanding the creation of resources and wealth. And when a person does not understand the creation of resources and wealth, the only intellectual alternative is to believe that increasing wealth must be at the cost of someone else. This belief that our good fortune must be an exploitation of others may be the taproot of false prophecy about doom that our evil ways must bring upon us.

In a trader-dominated society, the scribe is usually kept out of the management of affairs, but it given a more read more

In a trader-dominated society, the scribe is usually kept out of the management of affairs, but it given a more or less free hand in the cultural field. By frustrating the scribe's craving for commanding action, the trader draws upon himself the scribe's wrath and scorn.