I am going to become an economist. Is there any other profession where you are paid to be wrong 100% of the time?
“I am going to become an economist. Is there any other profession where you are paid to be wrong 100% of the time?”
Well, yes, you could write articles for the Wall Street Journal about how 2013 is going to be a banner year for economic growth and employment (as they have been doing lately). For that matter, you could be just like most members of the media, including Bob Costas at halftime of football games.
Meteorology?
You could also go into weather forecasting....
Other than being a Weatherman, I can’t think of one.
“I am going to become an economist. Is there any other profession where you are paid to be wrong 100% of the time?”
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Imam? Democrat politician? Al Gore? Give me a little time, I’ll think of something. Oh, did you hear that the great economist J. K. Galbraith is supposed to have said recently that the thing to do for the economy is to encourage people to take early retirement? Also I just received an e-mail from someone wanting to sell me investment advice (for my eighty cent portfolio) in which he raved about all the incredible “new wealth” to be created by the aging baby boomers who will hugely increase the demand for healthcare! The old timers of my youth would have said something like, “I ain’t no ‘conomiss but ah shore bleeve ah cudda come up wid sumpem better’n ‘at dare.”
As Pogo said so famously,”We have met the enemy and it is us.”
I think a thorough grounding in the broken window fallacy would be of more value than the average degree in economics. Anyone of reasonable intelligence can grasp it in five minutes or less, of course for some a lifetime is not long enough.