"Finance can be used to achieve some of the greatest challenges that are facing mankind, including things like dealing with cancer, Alzheimer's, energy, all sorts of societal challenges that require large amounts of financing" -Andrew Lo with Barry Ritholtz (Masters in Business podcast).
"No other industry is so fundamentally tied to our human nature. It
is creative in the truest sense of the word-by growing plants we create
and sustain life. And no other industry ties the global population
together so inescapably. All life on earth depends on agriculture, how
well we distribute agriculture's products-how well we trade
grain-determines how Earth's population gains access to its most
fundamental needs." -Elaine Kub, Mastering the Grain Markets
“Reining in speculators seems politically expedient. But we live in complex times. Throwing darts becomes perilous when policy makers begin to advocate (and worse yet, actually believe) that speculators should be removed from ag / food markets. Such a move would dismantle futures markets. Imagine what the world might look like a without market liquidity, price discovery and risk mitigation; not to mention the inability to establish pricing plans, attract new capital investment and stimulate innovation across the food business. The absence of those influences, facilitated by futures markets, would ultimately lead to less food production, availability and security – NOT the other way around. Taking speculators out of the mix would be devastating.” Dr. Nevil Speer, No Speculators? No thanks!, Drovers Cattle Network Agsight, March 2011
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