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'''La Grange''' is a city in [[Fayette County, Texas|Fayette County]], [[Texas]], [[United States]], near the [[Colorado River (Texas)|Colorado River]]. The population was 4,478 at the [[2000]] census. The [[2005]] population estimate was 4,620. It is the [[county seat]] of [[Fayette County, Texas|Fayette County]]{{GR|6}}.
[[Image:keynes.gif|right|]]
The town was a major site of German and Czech, because the rolling hills and forests are remnicient of their homelands. Even today the German and Czech influences on the town remain strong, seen in many local customs, the local architecture, and the town's reputation for not having participated in [[Prohibition in the United States |prohibition]] beyond a token effort.
'''John Maynard Keynes''' ([[June 5]], [[1883]] in [[Cambridge]] - [[April 21]], [[1946]] in [[Sussex, England|Sussex]]) was an English [[economist]], whose radical ideas had a major impact on modern economic and political thought. He is particularly remembered for advocating interventionist government policy, by which the government would use fiscal and monetary measures to aim to mitigate the adverse effects of economic [[recession]]s, [[depression]]s, and [[economic boom| boom]]s. His ideas have been further developed by the school of [[Keynesian economics]].
La Grange is the site from which the party in the [[Black Bean Episode]] left, after gathering around "the historic oak" which is local land mark. The tree is still standing and alive, although it suffered some damage after impact from a drunk driver and relies on a concrete support (which it has partially encompassed) to maintian stability.
=== Life and works ===
La Grange, [[Waterloo]] [[Washington-on-the-Brazos]] were the three primary candidates for the first capital of the [[Republic of Texas]], but [[Waterloo]] was eventually chosen, later renamed [[Austin]].
John Maynard Keynes was the son of John Neville Keynes (pronounced "Canes"), an economics lecturer at [[Cambridge University]] and Florence Ada Brown, a successful author and a social reformist.
Outside of La Grange was the "[[Chicken Ranch (Texas)|Chicken Ranch]]", a [[brothel]]. It was closed in [[1973]] due largely to the efforts of a Houston television reporter, [[Marvin Zindler]]. The town also drew worldwide attention when [[ZZ Top]] released its classic rock song "[[La Grange (song)|La Grange]]", which referenced "that home out on the range" (the Chicken Ranch). La Grange is the setting of ''[[The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas]]'', a movie from [[1982]] about the Chicken Ranch.
Keynes graduated in mathematics from [[King's College, Cambridge|King's College]], [[Cambridge University]], and afterwards increasingly turned his attention to [[economics]]. An advisor to the British government during [[World War I]], he first came to public prominence with the publication of ''The Economic Consequences of the Peace'', published after the end of the war in [[1919]]. This argued that the reparations which Germany was forced to pay to the victors in the war were too large and would lead to the ruin of the German economy. These predictions were arguably borne out when the German economy collapsed in the [[Hyperinflation]] of [[1923]], with only a small amount of reparations ever being paid.
La Grange is also the birth place and current home of the famous [[Taco Bell chihuahua]].
Keynes also published his ''Treatise on Probability'' in [[1920]], a notable contribution to the philosophical and mathematical underpinnings of probability theory.
[[Monument Hill and Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites]] are located south of La Grange off [[U.S. Route 77]].
His seminal book, ''[[General Theory of Employment Interest and Money|The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money]]'' was first published in [[1936]]. In this book Keynes put forward a theory based upon the notion of [[aggregate demand]] to explain variations in the overall level of economic activity, such as were observed in the [[Great Depression]]. The book advocated activist economic policy by government to stimulate demand in times of unemployment, for example by spending on public works. The book is often viewed as the foundation of modern [[macroeconomics]].
Keynes' theories were so influential (even when disputed), that a topic of economics called [[Keynesian economics]] discussing his theories and their applications was named after him.
During [[World War II]], Keynes argued in ''How to pay for the war'' that the war effort should be largely financed by higher taxation, rather than deficit spending, in order to avoid [[Inflation (economics)|Inflation]].
==Geography==
Keynes wrote "Essays in Biography" and "Essays in Persuasion", the former giving portraits of economists and notables, whilst the latter presents some of Keynes' attempts to influence decision-makers during the Great Depression.
[[Image:TXMap-doton-LaGrange.PNG|right|Location of La Grange, Texas]]
La Grange is located at {{coor dms|29|54|30|N|96|52|30|W|city}} (29.908262, -96.875025){{GR|1}}.
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of 9.3 [[km²]] (3.6 [[square mile|mi²]]). 9.2 km² (3.6 mi²) of it is land and 0.28% is water.
Following the war, Keynes argued in favour of a radical system for the management of currencies, involving a central bank for the world and a common unit of currency, the "Bancor".
The average elevation of La Grange is 272 feet above sea level. Average annual temperature is 69 degrees Fahrenheit.
=== Private life ===
==Demographics==
Arguably [[homosexual]] in earlier life, in mid-life Keynes enjoyed a happy marriage with the famous ballerina [[Lydia Lopokova]]. Keynes was a prominent member of the [[Bloomsbury group]]. He was ultimately a successful investor building up a substantial private fortune. He enjoyed collecting books and for example collected and protected during his lifetime many of [[Isaac Newton]]'s papers. Keynes died of cardiac infarction, his heart problems being aggravated by the strain of working on post-war international financial problems.
As of the [[census]]{{GR|2}} of [[2000]], there were 4,478 people, 1,792 households, and 1,146 families residing in the city. The [[population density]] was 484.3/km² (1,255.2/mi²). There were 2,067 housing units at an average density of 223.5/km² (579.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 74.27% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 10.36% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.54% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.69% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.02% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 12.19% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.92% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 20.81% of the population.
There were 1,792 households out of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.08.
His brother Sir [[Geoffrey Keynes]] ([[1887]]-[[1982]]) was a distinguished surgeon, scholar and [[bibliophile]], and his nephew Quentin Keynes ([[1921]]-[[2003]]) an adventurer and bibliophile.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 88.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.
=== Keynes the Investment Wizard===
The median income for a household in the city was $31,392, and the median income for a family was $39,718. Males had a median income of $28,631 versus $21,023 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $15,288. About 9.2% of families and 13.4% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 12.6% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
Keynes' brilliant record as an investor is demonstrated by the publicly available data of a fund he managed on behalf of [[King's College, Cambridge]].
==Education==
From 1928 to 1945, despite taking a massive hit during the Crash of 1929, Keynes' fund produced a very strong average increase of 13.2% compared with the general market in the United Kingdom declining by an average 0.5% per annum.
La Grange students attend school in the [[La Grange Independent School District]].
Students attend Hermes Elementary School, La Grange Intermediate School, La Grange Middle School, and [[La Grange High School]].
The approach generally adopted by Keynes with his investments he summarised accordingly:
==External links==
:1. A careful selection of a few investments having regard to their cheapness in relation to their probable actual and potential intrinsic value over a period of years ahead and in relation to alternative investments at the time;
*[http://www.ci.la-grange.tx.us/ City of La Grange Website]
*[http://www.lagrangetx.org/ La Grange Area Chamber of Commerce]
*[http://mainstreet.fais.net/new_main_street/citycam/citycam.htm La Grange City WebCam]
*[http://www.la-grange.k12.tx.us/ La Grange Independent School District]
*[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083642/ The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas] - on IMDb.com
{{Mapit-US-cityscale|29.908262|-96.875025}}
:2. A steadfast holding of these fairly large units through thick and thin, perhaps for several years, until either they have fulfilled their promise or it is evident that they were purchases on a mistake, and;
{{Texas}}
:3. A balanced investment position, i.e. a variety of risks in spite of individual holdings being large, and if possible opposed risks (''e.g.'' a holding of gold shares amongst other equities, since they are likely to move in opposite directions when there are general fluctuations).
[[Category:Cities in Texas]]
In an approach reminiscent of one of his followers billionaire investor [[Warren Buffett]] today, Keynes argued that "It is a mistake to think one limits one's risks by spreading too much between enterprises about which one knows little and has no reason for special confidence ... One's knowledge and experience are definitely limited and there are seldom more than two or three enterprises at any given time in which I personally feel myself to put full confidence."
[[Category:Fayette County, Texas]]
[[Category:County seats in Texas]]
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Keynes' advice on speculation some might say is timeless and ought to have been heeded by day-traders trying to prove themselves smarter than everyone else:
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:(Investment is) intolerably boring and over-exacting to any one who is entirely exempt from the gambling instinct; whilst he who has it must pay to this propensity the appropriate toll.
Keynes when reviewing an important early work on equities investments argued that "Well-managed industrial companies do not, as a rule, distribute to the shareholders the whole of their earned profits. In good years, if not in all years, they retain a part of their profits and put them back in the business. Thus there is an element of compound interest operating in favor of a sound industrial investment."
Buffett seized upon this analysis in his own investment thinking. It is the reason, he argued, why equities in the long run out-perform bonds because some of the "interest" is retained by the company and that produces more "interest." It therefore compounds. These simple philosophies helped build a fortune for Keynes and a vast investment empire for Buffett.
===Recommended reading===
* ''Essays on John Maynard Keynes''>, Milo Keynes (Editor), Cambridge University Press, 1975, ISBN 0-521-20534-4
* ''John Maynard Keynes: Hopes Betrayed 1883-1920'', Robert Skidelsky, Papermac, 1992, ISBN 033357379X (US Edition: ISBN 014023554X)
* ''John Maynard Keynes: The Economist as Saviour 1920-1937'', Robert Skidelsky, Papermac, 1994, ISBN 0333584996 (US Edition: ISBN 0140238069)
* ''John Maynard Keynes: Fighting for Britain 1937-1946'' (published in the United States as ''Fighting for Freedom''), Robert Skidelsky, Papermac, 2001, ISBN 0333779711 (US Edition: ISBN 0142001678)
See also: [[Simon Kuznets]]
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