IN PRAISE OF SCROOGE.

IN PRAISE OF SCROOGE. Steven E. Landsburg (the Armchair Economist), who is an illustration of Robertson Davies’s proposition that “[A]ll economists are rapt, fanciful creatures; it is necessary to their profession”, praises Scrooge. In fact, he has a whole chapter entitled, “What I Like About Scrooge” in his book MORE SEX IS SAFER SEX. He argues, “What could be more generous than keeping your lamps unlit and your plate unfilled, leaving more fuel for others to burn and more food for others to eat?” He goes further: “The only difference between miserliness and philanthropy is that the philanthropist serves a favored few while the miser spreads his largesse far and wide.”