Media star Ferguson says sorry about gay remarks on John Maynard Keynes
One of America's more famous Scottish imports, Harvard professor Niall Ferguson, has made “an unqualified apology” for comments he made on Thursday , suggesting that shortcomings in the economic philosophy of John Maynard Keynes’ philosophy was a result of him being gay.
Niall Ferguson: Very sorry
Ferguson speaking to a group of 500 financial advisers and investors in California, referred to Keynes’ famous worldview, “In the long run we are all dead,” but we are survived by future generations who must deal with the consequences of our actions.
Ferguson added that Keynes adopted this philosophy because he was a homosexual who could not reproduce.
Ferguson asked the audience how many children Keynes had. He explained that Keynes had none because he was a homosexual and was married to a ballerina, with whom he likely talked of “poetry” rather than procreated.
The audience was stunned by the remark.
Ferguson, a right-wing commentator who is no stranger to controversy has since apologised for the comment:
" I should not have suggested – in an off-the-cuff response that was not part of my presentation – that Keynes was indifferent to the long run because he had no children, nor that he had no children because he was gay. This was doubly stupid. First, it is obvious that people who do not have children also care about future generations. Second, I had forgotten that Keynes’s wife Lydia miscarried."
Ferguson's groveling apology went on, "My disagreements with Keynes’s economic philosophy have never had anything to do with his sexual orientation. It is simply false to suggest, as I did, that his approach to economic policy was inspired by any aspect of his personal life. As those who know me and my work are well aware, I detest all prejudice, sexual or otherwise."
Glasgow-born Ferguson attended Glasgow Acaemy before going on to Oxford and since has become an international media figure, with several major TV series to his credit . He recently completed a documentary on Henry Kissinger. Time magazine once named him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world .
Blogger Andrew Sullivan, who is openly gay, agrees that Ferguson’s comments were offensive, but urges the public to accept his apology: "I’ve known Niall as a friend since we studied history together at Oxford. This has not deterred me from criticizing his public arguments on the merits, so I’m not a suck-up.
"But I have known the man closely for many years – even read Corinthians at his recent wedding – and have never seen or heard or felt an iota of homophobia from him. He has supported me in all aspects of my life – and embraced my husband and my marriage.
"He said a horribly offensive thing – yes, it profoundly offended me – but he has responded swiftly with an unqualified apology. He cannot unsay something ugly. But he has done everything short of that. I am biased, but that closes the matter for me."