… is Richard Fulmer’s comment on a post at EconLog:
Someone who believes he can steer the economy is like a flea who believes he can steer a dog. While the flea can make the dog miserable, the dog is unlikely to end up where the flea intends.
DBx: Well said, but even this description understates the danger that the flea poses to the dog. By so irritating and disorienting Fido (or, as where I come from, Phideaux), the flea can incite the dog to wander into perilous territory far off any path that might be reasonably described as ‘optimal.’ Indeed, the flea might cause Phideaux to wander into a thicket from which it is unable to escape, or even to stumble off of a high cliff.
