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If I Had To Sum Up My Practical Skills, I Would Use One Word: Survival. And Operating A Hedge Fund Utilized My Training In Survival To The Fullest.
-George Soros
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If I Had To

George Soros
...
If I Had To Sum Up My Practical Skills, I Would Use One Word: Survival. And Operating A Hedge Fund Utilized My Training In Survival To The Fullest.

Understanding the Quote: "if i had to sum up my practical skills, i would use..."

This quote by George Soros reflects deeply on the theme of skills. It connects to the universal human journey of purpose, motivation, and reflection. Often categorized under Skills, Survival, Training, the quote offers insight, emotional clarity, and intellectual inspiration to readers worldwide.

Whether you’re a student exploring new ideas, a leader trying to motivate your team, or someone seeking direction in life — this quote provides value. It resonates because it’s more than words — it’s a bridge between experience and wisdom. It shows how George Soros interprets life's core challenges and triumphs.

Lessons From the Quote

This quote teaches resilience and focus. It reminds readers that no matter where they stand in life, reflection and self-awareness lead to growth. Each word has meaning, and when studied, it becomes clear how impactful thoughtful language can be.

About George Soros

George Soros is celebrated for insightful thoughts on skills and survival. Their legacy lives on through writings that guide, comfort, and inspire. Discover more on their profile page.

Actionable Takeaways

  • Reflect on how this quote applies to your current life path.
  • Share the message with someone who needs inspiration.
  • Write your thoughts on this quote in a journal or blog post.
  • Use it as a daily affirmation or reminder.

Closing Thoughts

Quotes like this endure because they capture universal truths. They comfort us in solitude and empower us in groups. Carry this quote forward — live by its wisdom, share its message, and keep its essence alive.

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Topic
Skills
Survival
Training
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The Strength Of This Country Lies In The Declaration Of Independence And The Bill Of Rights And The Freedom Of Speech And Thought.
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Playing By The Rules, One Does The Best He Can, Irrespective Of The Social Consequences. Whereas In Making The Rules, People Ought To Be Concerned With The Social Consequences And Not With Their Personal Interests.
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The Financial Markets Generally Are Unpredictable. So That One Has To Have Different Scenarios... The Idea That You Can Actually Predict What's Going To Happen Contradicts My Way Of Looking At The Market.
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It's Not Whether You're Right Or Wrong That's Important, But How Much Money You Make When You're Right And How Much You Lose When You're Wrong
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Giving Government Aid To A Bank Basically Transforms It Into A Utility. The Huge Salaries In This Sector Are Only A Symptom Of A More Profound Misalignment. The Profitability Of The Finance Industry Has Been Excessive. [...] That Was Absurd.
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An Open Society Is A Society Which Allows Its Members The Greatest Possible Degree Of Freedom In Pursuing Their Interests Compatible With The Interests Of Others.
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I Wish I Could Write A Book That Will Be Read For As Long As Our Civilization Lasts. I Would Value It Much More Highly Than Any Business Success If I Could Contribute To An Understanding Of The World In Which We Live Or, Better Yet, If I Could Help To Preserve The Economic And Political System That Has Allowed Me To Flourish As A Participant.
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When A Long-term Trend Loses It’s Momentum, Short-term Volatility Tends To Rise. It Is Easy To See Why That Should Be So: The Trend-following Crowd Is Disoriented.
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I'll Tell You What I'd Do If It Were Up To Me: I Would Establish A Strictly Controlled Distribution Network Through Which I Would Make Most Drugs, Excluding The Most Dangerous Ones Like Crack, Legally Available. Initially I Would Keep The Prices Low Enough To Destroy The Drug Trade. Once That Objective Was Attained I Would Keep Raising The Prices, Very Much Like The Excise Duty On Cigarettes, But I Would Make An Exception For Registered Addicts In Order To Discourage Crime. I Would Use A Portion Of The Income For Prevention And Treatment. And I Would Foster Social Opprobrium Of Drug Use.
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A Full And Fair Discussion Is Essential To Democracy.
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We Must Not Forget; But We Must Forgive. Suffering Often Such Compassion From The Jewish Community. It Was Jewish Groups In The Us Who Were In The Forefront In Opposing The Ethnic Cleansing Of Muslim In Bosnia.
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Economic History Is A Never-ending Series Of Episodes Based On Falsehoods And Lies, Not Truths. It Represents The Path To Big Money. The Object Is To Recognize The Trend Whose Premise Is False, Ride That Trend And Step Off Before It Is Discredited.
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I Don't Panic. The Same Thing Applies To Me As To Everybody Else, So I'm Given To Euphoria And Despair. And I Would Say That I Basically Have Survived By Recognizing My Mistakes.
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Proposition 19 Already Is A Winner No Matter What Happens On Election Day. The Mere Fact Of Its Being On The Ballot Has Elevated And Legitimized Public Discourse About Marijuana And Marijuana Policy In Ways I Could Not Have Imagined A Year Ago.
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The More Comprehensive And Convincing A Debt Reduction Program Is, The Less Likely It Is To Fail. And Remember, Just As Germany Is Grateful To America For The Marshall Plan, Italy Would Be Grateful To Germany For Helping It Lower Its Refinancing Costs.
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If I Had To Sum Up My Practical Skills, I Would Use One Word: Survival. And Operating A Hedge Fund Utilized My Training In Survival To The Fullest.
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Friendly
Overcoming
The Sovereignty Of States Must Be Subordinated To International Law And International Institutions.
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Past
Feelings
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America
The Collapse Of The Global Marketplace Would Be A Traumatic Event With Unimaginable Consequences. Yet I Find It Easier To Imagine Than The Continuation Of The Present Regime.
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Events
Imagine
Anticipating Attacks, I Should Like To Emphasize That I Do Not Subscribe To The Myths Propagated By Enemies Of Israel And I Am Not Blaming Jews For Anti-semitism. Anti-semitism Predates The Birth Of Israel. Neither Israel's Policies Nor The Critics Of Those Policies Should Be Held Responsible For Anti-semitism. At The Same Time, I Do Believe That Attitudes Toward Israel Are Influenced By Israel's Policies, And Attitudes Toward The Jewish Community Are Influenced By The Pro-israel Lobby's Success In Suppressing Divergent Views.
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Over You
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Substance
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Study
Theory
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Opposites
Assuming
Prevailing
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Inspirational
Force
Mankind
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Powerful
Successful
Israel
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Fighting
Decision
Investing
Just As The Process Of Repealing National Alcohol Prohibition Began With Individual States Repealing Their Own Prohibition Laws, So Individual States Must Now Take The Initiative With Respect To Repealing Marijuana Prohibition Laws.
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Law
Alcohol
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Perfect
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Moving
Opportunity
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Exercise
Investing
My Main Concern Is With The World Order
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World
Concern
Start By Assuming The Market Is Always Wrong, So If You Copy Everybody Else On Wall Street, You're Doomed To Do Poorly.
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Streets
My Conceptual Framework, Which Basically Emphasizes The Importance Of Misconceptions, Makes Me Extremely Critical Of My Own Decisions. I Know That I Am Bound To Be Wrong, And Therefore Am More Likely To Correct My Own Mistakes.
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Decision
Framework
Money Values Do Not Simply Mirror The State Of Affairs In The Real World; Valuation Is A Positive Act That Makes An Impact On The Course Of Events. Monetary And Real Phenomena Are Connected In A Reflexive Fashion; That Is, They Influence Each Other Mutually. The Reflexive Relationship Manifests Itself Most Clearly In The Use And Abuse Of Credit.
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Real
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Everything Adds Up To A Major Crisis. Humanity Is Faced With A Global Energy Crisis ... The Core Of The Crisis Lies In The Increasing Shortage Of Oil.
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Oil
Humanity
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Decision
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I Think It Is Natural That Every Country Has To Take Care Of Its Interests, But There Are Some Interests That Are Common To All Countries. There Are Some Human Interests, Or We Need Also International Cooperation. We've Sometimes Confused It With Dictation.
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Confused
Thinking
If The Bubbles Contain A Misconception, As They Always Do, Then It Can't Be Maintained Forever.
Forever
Ifs
Misconception
No Individual Anonymous Participant Can Influence The Prices And Therefore You Really Can Speculate In The Market Without Paying Attention To Morality. That's One Of The Positive Features Of Markets. That's Why They Function.
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Morality
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Running
Trends
Persist
Well, You Know, I Was A Human Being Before I Became A Businessman.
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Wells
Humans
I Chose America As My Home Because I Value Freedom And Democracy, Civil Liberties And An Open Society.
Freedom
Home
America
Changeless Society Is Characterized By The Absense Of Alternatives.
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Views
Opposites
Studying Economics Is Not A Good Preparation For Dealing With It.
Preparation
Study
Economics
Discount The Obvious, Bet On The Unexpected
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Obvious
Discounts
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Pain
Suffering
Nightmare
I Have Made It A Principle To Give Advice That Does Not Serve My Personal Interest But Rather The Common Interests.
Giving
Advice
Principles
It Is Much Easier To Put Existing Resources To Better Use, Than To Develop Resources Where They Do Not Exist.
Use
Investing
Easier
A Lot Of The Evil In The World Is Actually Not Intentional. A Lot Of People In The Financial System Did A Lot Of Damage Without Intending To.
People
Evil
World
My Original Intention Was To Spend The Money In My Lifetime.
Lifetime
Intention
Originals
Outperforming The Market With Low Volatility On A Consistent Basis Is An Impossibility. I Outperformed The Market For 30-odd Years, But Not With Low Volatility.
Years
Risk
Management
As A Society We Can't Live Without Moral Considerations. We Do Have To Protect The Public Good. And Markets Are Not Designed To Do That, So We Need A Political Process.
Political
Needs
Moral
If We Carry This Line Of Argument To Its Logical Conclusion, The Meaning Of Life Consists Of The Flaws In One's Conceptions And What One Does About Them. Life Can Be Seen As A Fertile Fallacy.
Meaning Of Life
Doe
Investing
We Are Trying To Make The World A Better Place, But That Is Not Necessarily What We Accomplish. Many Of The Problems Which Preoccupy Us Are Basically Insoluble.
Trying
World
Problem
A Global Economy Is Characterized Not Only By The Free Movement Of Goods And Services But, More Important, By The Free Movement Of Ideas And Of Capital.
Ideas
Important
Investing
However, You Have To Recognize That Regulations Will Never Be Completely Successful And They Will Always Be Full Of Holes. You Must Constantly Be Ready To Fill New Holes. Actually Regulation Should Be Kept To A Minimum, But There Has To Be Some Cooperation Between Market Participants And Authorities - As Was The Case In The Early Postwar Years. The Bank Of England Was A Very Successful Regulator By Cooperating With Market Participants. This Cooperative Spirit Was Broken By The Market Fundamentalists.
Successful
Years
Broken
China Could Easily Emerge As The Great Winner If The Chinese Leaders Handle The Situation Well. On The Other Hand, They Could Also Turn Out To Be The Biggest Losers If They Handle It Poorly. If The Management Turns Out Be Wrong, This Could Lead To A Political Crisis In China.
Hands
Leader
Political
The Trouble With Institutional Investors Is That Their Performance Is Usually Measured Relative To Their Peer Group And Not By An Absolute Yardstick. This Makes Them Trend Followers By Definition.
Groups
Peers
Followers
There Is Very Little Difference Between Speculation And Investment. The Only Difference Is Basically That Investments Are Successful Speculations Because If You Successfully Anticipate The Future You Make A Speculative Profit.
Successful
Differences
Littles
I'm Not Doing My Philanthropic Work Out Of Any Kind Of Guilt, Or Any Need To Create Good Public Relations. I'm Doing It Because I Can Afford To Do It, And I Believe In It.
Work
Believe
Guilt
Economics Seeks To Be A Science. Science Is Supposed To Be Objective And It Is Difficult To Be Scientific When The Subject Matter, The Participant In The Economic Process, Lacks Objectivity.
Objectivity
Investing
Matter
Hedge Funds Are A Very Efficient Way Of Managing Money. But There Are Clearly Some Risks. Hedge Funds Use Credit And Credit Is A Source Of Instability. Transactions Involving Credit Should Be Regulated.
Risk
Use
Credit
I Put Forward A Pretty General Theory That Financial Markets Are Intrinsically Unstable. That We Really Have A False Picture When We Think About Markets Tending Towards Equilibrium.
Thinking
Financial
Unstable
It Is Sort Of A Disease When You Consider Yourself Some Kind Of God, The Creator Of Everything, But I Feel Comfortable About It Now Since I Began To Live It Out.
Disease
Kind
Feels
The People Currently In Charge Have Forgotten The First Principle Of An Open Society, Namely That We May Be Wrong And That There Has To Be Free Discussion. That It's Possible To Be Opposed To The Policies Without Being Unpatriotic.
People
Being Free
Firsts
Stock Market Bubbles Don't Grow Out Of Thin Air. They Have A Solid Basis In Reality, But Reality As Distorted By A Misconception.
Reality
Air
Successful Investing
If We Care About Universal Principles Such As Freedom, Democracy And The Rule Of Law, We Cannot Leave Them To The Care Of Market Forces; We Must Establish Some Other Institutions To Safeguard Them.
Law
Democracy
Principles
To My Mind, There Is A Solution Which Has To Do With Democracy, Because Democratic Governments Are Subject To The Will Of The People. So, If The People Will It, You Can Actually Create International Institutions Through The Democratic States.
Government
People
Mind
In The Case Of A Meltdown, The Regulatory Authorities May Find Themselves Obliged To Step In To Preserve The Integrity Of The System. It Is In That Light That The Authorities Have Both A Right And An Obligation To Supervise And Regulate Derivative Instruments.
Integrity
Light
Investing
I Admire Chancellor Merkel For Her Leadership Qualities, But She Is Leading Europe In The Wrong Direction.
Europe
Quality
Admire
I Call Government That Works The Best For People Open Society, Which Is Basically Just Another More General Term For A Democracy That Is - You Call It Maybe A Liberal Democracy. It's Not Only Majority Rule But Also Respect For Minorities And Minority Opinions And The Rule Of Law. So It's Really A Sort Of Institutional Democracy.
Government
Law
Majority Rule
I Rely A Great Deal On Animal Instincts.
Animal
Instinct
Deals
I Am Against Market Fundamentalism. I Think This Propaganda That Government Involvement Is Always Bad Has Been Very Successful - But Also Very Harmful To Our Society.
Successful
Thinking
Government
America Felt Victorious And Generous After World War Ii. They Had Also Learned From The Mistakes After World War I When They Imposed Punishment On Germany. What Became Of Germany? A Nazi Dictatorship Which Threatened The World. Today's Germany Doesn't Feel As Prosperous And Generous As America Then. But Actually, Germany Still Is Very Prosperous.
War
Mistake
Punishment
In 2012, The Far-right Golden Dawn Won 21 Seats In Greece's Parliamentary Election, The Right-wing Jobbik Gained Ground In My Native Hungary, And The National Front's Marine Le Pen Received Strong Backing In France's Presidential Election. Growing Support For Similar Forces Across Europe Points To An Inescapable Conclusion: The Continent's Prolonged Financial Crisis Is Creating A Crisis Of Values That Is Now Threatening The European Union Itself.
Strong
Money
Marine
It Is Credit That Matters, Not Money (in Other Words, Monetarism Is A False Ideology).
Investing
Credit
Matter
You Could Adjust The Punishment To Fit The Infraction. Even A Small Fine Would Be Enough To Bring An Errant Government To Heel.
Government
Punishment
Would Be
It Is Better To Have A Cat And Mouse Game Where The Cat Has The Upper Hand Than A Cat And Mouse Game Where The Mice Are Ruling. Because The Latter Means That The Market Participants Are Given Free Range. That Was Actually The Big Misconception Of Our National Hero Ronald Reagan, Who Always Talked About The Magic Of The Market.
Hero
Mean
Cat
Short Term Volatility Is Greatest At Turning Points And Diminishes As A Trend Becomes Established
Trends
Volatility
Term
Although I Have Made A Fortune In The Financial Markets, I Now Fear That The Untrammeled Intensification Of Laissez-faire Capitalism And The Spread Of Market Values Into All Areas Of Life Is Endangering Our Open And Democratic Society. The Main Enemy Of The Open Society, I Believe, Is No Longer The Communist But The Capitalist Threat.
Believe
Enemy
Society
I Would Be Lying, However, If I Claimed That I Could Always Formulate Worthwhile Hypotheses On The Basis Of My Theoretical Framework. Sometimes There Were No Reflexive Processes To Be Found; Sometimes I Failed To Find Them; And, What Was The Most Painful Of All, Sometimes I Got Them Wrong. One Way Or Another, I Often Invested Without A Worthwhile Hypothesis And My Activities Were Not Very Different From A Random Walk.
Lying
Different
Would Be
These Public-private Partnerships Are Very, Very Dangerous. The Most Rotten Part Of The Financial System In The Us Consisted Of The Government Sponsored Entities, Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac. They Really Kicked Off This Crisis. The State Should Set The Rules And Enforce Them - But Not Become Involved As A Market Player.
Player
Government
Rotten
What Works For Germany Can't Work For The Rest Of Europe: No Country Can Run A Chronic Surplus Without Others Running Deficits.
Running
Country
Europe
I'm Only Rich Because I Know When I'm Wrong.
Making Money
Rich
Knows
There Is A Resurgence Of Anti-semitism In Europe. The Policies Of The Bush Administration And The Sharon Administration Contribute To That. It's Not Specifically Anti-semitism, But It Does Manifest Itself In Anti-semitism As Well.
Europe
Administration
Doe
The Main Enemy Of The Open Society, I Believe, Is No Longer The Communist But The Capitalist Threat.
Believe
Enemy
Laissez Faire Capitalism
Esperanto Was A Very Useful Language, Because Wherever You Went, You Found Someone To Speak With.
Found Someone
Esperanto
Language
Financial Markets ... Resent Any Kind Of Government Interference But They Hold A Belief Deep Down That If Conditions Get Really Rough The Authorities Will Step In.
Business
Government
Steps
Unfortunately, The More Complex The System, The Greater The Room For Error.
Errors
Investing
Rooms
Regulating And Taxing Marijuana Would Simultaneously Save Taxpayers Billions Of Dollars In Enforcement And Incarceration Costs, While Providing Many Billions Of Dollars In Revenue Annually.
Marijuana
Dollars
Enforcement
I Think There's A Lot Of Merit In An International Economy And Global Markets, But They're Not Sufficient Because Markets Don't Look After Social Needs.
Thinking
Merit
Needs
I Commissioned Two Political Experts To Advise Me About What I Could Do To Oppose The Re-election Of President Bush.
Two
Political
President
Markets Are Designed To Allow Individuals To Look After Their Private Needs And To Pursue Profit. It's Really A Great Invention, And I Wouldn't Underestimate The Value Of That. But They're Not Designed To Take Care Of Social Needs.
Great Inventions
Needs
Looks
Revolutions Usually Start With Enthusiasm And End In Tears.
Tears
Enthusiasm
Revolution
My Approach Works Not By Making Valid Predictions But By Allowing Me To Correct False Ones.
Predictions
Approach
Allowing
Now That I Have Called You On Your False Accusation, You Are Using Additional Smear Tactics.
Fake People
Smear Campaigns
Tactics
Market Prices Are Always Wrong.
Always Wrong
Sometimes Time Actually Works Against You If You Refuse To Face The Relevant Issues And Explain To The Public What Is At Stake.
Issues
Faces
Sometimes
I Am Not A Zionist, Nor Am I Am A Practicing Jew, But I Have A Great Deal Of Sympathy For My Fellow Jews And A Deep Concern For The Survival Of Israel.
Israel
Survival
Zionist
Taking This View, It Is Possible To See Financial Markets As A Laboratory For Testing Hypotheses, Albeit Not Strictly Scientific Ones. The Truth Is, Successful Investing Is A Kind Of Alchemy.
Successful
Views
Investing
When I Had Made More Money Than I Needed For Myself And My Family, I Set Up A Foundation To Promote The Values And Principles Of A Free And Open Society.
Foundation
Principles
My Family
There Is No Doubt That The Countries That Now Have A Very Large Debt Have Not Introduced The Kind Of Structural Reforms That Germany Did And Are Therefore At A Disadvantage. But The Problem Is That This Disadvantage Is Becoming Even More Pronounced Through The Punitive Policies In Place.
Country
Doubt
Reform
Market Prices Are Always Wrong In The Sense That They Present A Biased View Of The Future.
Views
Biased
Always Wrong
Misconceptions Play A Prominent Role In My View Of The World.
Views
Play
Roles
This Crisis Has The Potential To Be A Lot Worse Than Lehman Brothers.
Brother
Lehman Brothers
Crisis
Democracy, By Its Very Nature, Can't Be Imposed On People. Democracy Has To Be The People Deciding For Themselves.
Democracies Have
People
Democracy
This Is The Joint Responsibility Of Everyone Who Was Involved In The Introduction Of The Euro Without Understanding The Consequences. When The Euro Was Introduced, The Regulators Allowed Banks To Buy Unlimited Amounts Of Government Bonds Without Setting Aside Any Equity Capital. And The European Central Bank Discounted All Government Bonds On Equal Terms. So Commercial Banks Found It Advantageous To Accumulate The Bonds Of The Weaker Countries To Earn A Few Extra Basis Points.
Country
Responsibility
Government
When Interest Rates Are Low We Have Conditions For Asset Bubbles To Develop, And They Are Developing At The Moment. The Ultimate Asset Bubble Is Gold.
Gold
Investing
Moments
Markets Are Imperfect. So You Do Need Regulation, Knowing That The Regulators Are Also Human.
Knowing
Needs
Regulation
Every Bubble Has Two Components: Something - Some Real Trend, And A Misconception About That Trend.
Real
Two
Trends
Once We Realize That Imperfect Understanding Is The Human Condition There Is No Shame In Being Wrong, Only In Failing To Correct Our Mistakes.
Mistake
Failure
Understanding
As An Anonymous Participant In Financial Markets, I Never Had To Weigh The Social Consequences Of My Actions ... I Felt Justified In Ignoring Them On The Grounds That I Was Playing By The Rules.
Action
Financial
Justified
Fundamental Analysis Seeks To Establish How Underlying Values Are Reflected In Stock Prices, Whereas The Theory Of Reflexivity Shows How Stock Prices Can Influence Underlying Values
Analysis
Fundamentals
Influence
If Investing Is Entertaining, If You're Having Fun, You're Probably Not Making Any Money. Good Investing Is Boring.
Fun
Investing Money
Boring
As I Discovered, There Is A Great Deal Of Similarity Between A Boom-bust Process In The Financial Markets And The Rise And Fall Of The Soviet System.
Fall
Investing
Financial
If Every Rich Person Gave 50 Percent Of Their Wealth To Charity, I Would Not Say They Should Pay More Taxes.
Charity
Pay
Wealth
When It Comes To Social Consequences, They've Got All Different People Acting In Different Ways, Very Difficult To Even Have A Proper Criterion Of Success. So, It's A Difficult Task.
Success
People
Acting
Political Debate Is More Interested In Manipulating The Truth, Than Finding The Truth.
Political
Debate
Finding Out The Truth
There Is Always A Divergence Between Our Perception And What Actually Exists.
Perception
Divergence
The Integration Of Europe Was Very Much Led By A Germany That Was Always Willing To Pay A Little Bit Extra To Reach A Compromise That Everybody Accepted, Because Germany Was So Eager To Get European Support For Reunification. That Was Called The "farsighted Vision," Which Created The European Union.
Europe
Support
Vision
The Global Crisis Is Caused By Pathologies Inherent In The Global Financial System Itself.
Financial
Pathology
Crisis
The Hardest Thing To Judge Is What Level Of Risk Is Safe.
Judging
Risk
Investing
There Is No Question That A Breakup Of The Euro Would Be Very Damaging, Very Costly, Both Financially And Politically. And The Biggest Loss Would Be Incurred By Germany. Germans Have To Bear In Mind That, Effectively, They Have Suffered Practically No Losses So Far. Transfers Have All Been In The Form Of Loans, And It Is Only When The Loans Are Not Repaid That Real Losses Will Be Incurred.
Breakup
Real
Loss
The Securitisation Of Mortgages Added A New Dimension Of Systemic Risk. Financial Engineers Claimed They Were Reducing Risks Through Geographic Diversification: In Fact They Were Increasing Them By Creating An Agency Problem. The Agents Were More Interested In Maximising Fee Income Than In Protecting The Interests Of Bondholders. That Is The Verity That Was Ignored By Regulators And Market Participants Alike.
Creating
Agency
Risk
An Open Society Calls Itself Open To Improvement. It Is Based On The Recognition That People Have Divergent Views And Interests, And That Nobody Is In Possession Of The Ultimate Truth.
Views
People
Divergent
Law Has Become A Business. Health Care Has Become A Business. Unfortunately, Politics Has Also Become A Business. That Really Undermines Society.
Law
Care
Health Care
When Money Is Free, The Rational Lender Will Keep On Lending Until There Is No One Else To Lend To.
Investing
Lending
Rational
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