"Those who work in banking, venture capital, and other financial firms are in charge of allocating the economy’s investment resources. They decide, in

"Those who work in banking, venture capital, and other financial firms are in charge of allocating the economy’s investment resources. They decide, in a decentralized and competitive way, which companies and industries will shrink and which will grow. It makes sense that a nation would allocate many of its most talented and thus highly compensated individuals to the task." This quote also stuck out to me to for two reason: (1) First, yes, it's true that these individuals collectively allocate the capital in our nation (and other nations), but at no point has anyone made a convincing case that this is the optimal (i.e. global maxima) for the overall good of society. There are myriad alternative ways in which society could organize itself to better allocate capital. What evidence out there actually supports the status quo as the best way, especially considering that we've never really given support to any plausible/promising alternatives. (2) Second, it matters not if you are the "most talented" individuals for the task if you don't act impeccably ethically. The only thing worse them incompetent people with good intentions are competent people with ill intentions. Wall Street if full of the latter, ensuring that their talents are going towards doing a remarkably good job at extracting rent from any of society's productivity gains.