H.L. Mencken: Useless & Evil Things
on Tuesday, January 5, 2016H.L. Mencken Money Quotation saying total volume of spending in a rich city exceeds the entire budget of a small country. H.L. Mencken said:
“During many a single week, I daresay, more money is spent in New York upon useless and evil things than would suffice to run the kingdom of Denmark for a year” — H.L. Mencken
In this quote, H.L. Mencken is drawing a comparison between the lavish spending habits he observed in New York City versus the more modest budget of an entire country. Specifically, Mencken suggests that the amount of money wasted on frivolous or harmful pursuits in New York during a single week would be enough to fund all of Denmark’s government expenditures for an entire year.
The implication is that New York residents and businesses spent exorbitantly on unnecessary luxuries, entertainment and vices compared to the fiscal needs of maintaining an entire sovereign state.
In essence, Mencken appears to be criticizing the conspicuous consumption and indulgence he saw in 1920s New York by contrasting it with the relatively thrifty management required to govern the modest-sized nation of Denmark.
Birthday: September 12, 1880 – Death: January 29, 1956