The great economist and liberal, John Kenneth Galbraith, died last night. As another great economist, John Maynard Keynes, once said, "In the long run we are all dead." And, indeed, Galbraith - who was 97 years old at his death - lived a "wonderful and full life," in the words of his son. According to the New York Times:
Galbraith, who was outspoken in his support of government action to solve social problems, became a large figure on the American scene in the decades after World War II.He was one of America's best-known liberals, and he never shied away from the label.
''There is no hope for liberals if they seek only to imitate conservatives, and no function either,'' Galbraith wrote in a 1992 article in Modern Maturity, a publication of the American Association of Retired Persons.
Galbraith's most famous book, "The Affluent Society," was written in 1958 but is still very relevant and true today. The main thesis was, as the New York Times writes, that "the American economy was producing individual wealth but hasn't adequately addressed public needs such as schools and highways." Sound familiar?
Anyway, it is said that economics is "the dismal science," but John Kenneth Galbraith certainly didn't live a "dismal" life. How many people are awarded two Medals of Freedom by Presidents (Truman and Clinton) 54 years apart - in 1946 and 2000? And how many economists have you heard of, anyway? Well, John Kenneth Galbraith was certainly one of them.
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