"The dilemma posed by a choice between rules and men largely begs the question. There are, to be sure, times when rules, constraints, commitments, contract or treaty provisions stand in the way and should be transcended because of force majeure, acts of God, some deus ex machina that makes clear that all bets are off. ... If one relies on men of responsibility to make the right choice in crisis among conflicting rules, or to follow an altogether different course for which no precedent exists, there is a danger of creating new precedents and new rules, which may be applied mistakenly under different circumstances. ⌠The alternative to rulesâmen, which of course includes womenâbegs another question. Men have different responsibilities, principles, understandings, interests."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
"Rules vs Men: Lessons from a Century of Monetary Policy", Originally published in Christoph Buchheim, Michael Hutter, and Harold James, eds., Zerrissene Zwischenkriegszeit Beiträge (1994), republished in Comparative Political Economy: A Retrospective (2003)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Charles_P._Kindleberger
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Charles P. Kindleberger
Charles Poor "Charlie" Kindleberger (October 12, 1910 â July 7, 2003) was an American economic historian.
9 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Charles P. Kindleberger â
Related Quotes
"The explanation of this book is that the 1929 depression was so wide, so deep, and so long because the international âŚ"
"We were conscious of a great sense of excitement about the plan. Marshall himself was a great, great man â funny, oddâŚ"
"A follow-the-leader process develops as firms and households see that others are profiting from speculative purchasesâŚ"
"The monetary history of the last four hundred years has been replete with financial crises. The pattern was that inveâŚ"
"Economic responsibility goes with military strength and an undue share in the costs of peacekeeping. Free riders are âŚ"
"Both the existence of these parallels and their tragic nature would not have escaped Charles Kindleberger, whose WorlâŚ"
"My old teacher Charles Kindleberger used to say, âAnyone who spends too much time thinking about international money âŚ"
"Charlie Kindleberger was a delightful colleague: perceptive, responsive, curious about everything, full of character,âŚ"
"Americans have always been especially prone to regard all things as resulting from the free choice of a free will. PrâŚ"
"Democracy is clearly most appropriate for countries which enjoy an economic surplus and least appropriate for countriâŚ"