Sunday, August 22, 2010

An Interesting Quote for the Day

In a section of the book on The Scottish Enlightenment, by Broade, and in the section by Oz-Salzberger, there is a quote as follows (pp 160-161):

"...Adam Smith...(in speaking of politicians, in his Wealth of Nations) "that insidious and craft animal, vulgarly called a statesman or politician, whose councils are directed by the momentary fluctuations of affairs..." Vulgarity ... a byword for conceptual fuzziness, for short term unpredictability, for weaknesses hindering actors and observers alike from approaching politics as a science..."

It is clear that Adam Smith observed in his day what one may have always observed and may continue to do so.