John Kenneth Galbraith

He was a leading 20th-century institutional economist who taught long-term as a Harvard professor, acted as a brain trust for the Kennedy administration, and served as ambassador to India. In his book *The Affluent Society*, he sharply critiqued the paradox of "private opulence and public squalor"—where public goods are neglected in the shadow of private consumption—and advocated for the importance of investing in welfare and education. Sounding an alarm against Cold War market fundamentalism, he emphasized the government's role in countering giant corporations. Also known as a polished writer, he profoundly influenced liberal economic thought.

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