Niall Ferguson Quotes

I would say I'm a 19th-century liberal, possibly even an 18th-century one.

Economic knowledge necessarily leads to liberalism

The difference between Libertarian and Conservative is that Conservatives understand this, and know that unregulated capitalism will eventually end with human meat sold in market places, and slavery. Alas, many Conservatives think that everything has to be regulated and controlled.

I really didn't know much about the Libertarians. I knew they were for less government and more individual freedom. I liked that.

In my book, 'The Big Three in Economics,' I found that the press has frequently and prematurely written the obituary of Adam Smith and his free-market philosophy, only to see a new and more vibrant global marketplace reemerge after being savagely attacked by Keynesians, Marxists, and assorted socialists.

I am a believer in Adam Smith, who says that if you look at something that really contributes value to society, and you can deliver it at a reasonable price, then society will recognise that at some point because rational behaviour will come into play.

The only way that has ever been discovered to have a lot of people cooperate together voluntarily is through the free market. And that's why it's so essential to preserving individual freedom.

The real boneheads are the libertarians.

I think Tierney is also more libertarian than he is conservative in the conventional sense.

I'm a bit of a Libertarian.

I've always been about less government.

I grew up in a family that despised not only communism but collectivism, socialism, and any 'ism' that deprived the individual of his or her natural rights.

I'm a libertarian. It's a terrible word.

In 'The Future and Its Enemies,' I argue that individual creativity and enterprise are not only personally satisfying but socially good, producing progress and happiness. For celebrating creativity and happiness, I have been called a fascist by critics on both coasts.

Adam Smith pointed out that there were three things that make us more prosperous, in a general sort of way: freedom to pursue our own self-interest; specialization, which he called division of labor; and freedom of trade.

The reason I got involved in public service, by and large, if I had to credit one thinker, one person, it would be Ayn Rand. The fight we are in here, make no mistake about it, is a fight of individualism versus collectivism.

It's the libertarians who want to reclaim decision-making for themselves. It's the small government folks who see government as a great Leviathan gobbling up more and more of their treasure and freedoms.

Well, I'm a libertarian conservative, so I believe in limited government/maximum individual freedom.

I became a Republican because I trust people more than I trust government.

I do think one success of Northern Europe, which the United States came from, was its willingness to accept innovation in business practices like Adam Smith and the whole Enlightenment. It essentially made the merchant class free instead of controlled by the king and aristocracy. That was essential.

I actually don't believe in big government, and half the time I'm never quite sure I believe in government, generally.

If we Americans are too concerned about freedom and liberty, it is because we have read too much of John Locke and Adam Smith.

The right to suffer is one of the joys of a free economy.

Capitalism is the fullest expression of anarchism, and anarchism is the fullest expression of capitalism.

In a capitalist society, all human relationships are voluntary. Men are free to cooperate or not, to deal with one another or not, as their own individual judgments, convictions and interests dictate.