300 Quotes by George Soros

When it comes to social consequences, they’ve got all different people acting in different ways, very difficult to even have a proper criterion of success. So, it’s a difficult task.

What works for Germany can’t work for the rest of Europe: No country can run a chronic surplus without others running deficits.

However, even a strong government can’t perform miracles. It needs money from the taxpayers.

Bush’s war in Iraq has done untold damage to the United States. It has impaired our military power and undermined the morale of our armed forces. Our troops were trained to project overwhelming power. They were not trained for occupation duties.

The only thing that could hurt me is if my success encouraged me to return to my childhood fantasies of omnipotence – but that is not likely to happen as long as I remain engaged in the financial markets, because they constantly remind me of my limitations.

I don’t use my money to gain political influence for my private interests, which is what many rich people do, and what, in a sense, market fundamentalism does, because it is in the interests of people who have a lot of money to have as little taxes as possible.

I’m not doing my philanthropic work, out of any kind of guilt, or any need to create good public relations. I’m doing it because I can afford to do it, and I believe in it.

Discount the obvious, bet on the unexpected.

The main difference between me and other people who have amassed this kind of money is that I am primarily interested in ideas, and I don’t have much personal use for money.