A THREAD on most thought provoking ideas by Milton Friedman:
1/
A society that puts equality before freedom will get neither.
1/
A society that puts equality before freedom will get neither.
2/
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself.
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself.
3/
The great virtue of a free market system is that it does not care what color people are; it does not care what their religion is.
It is the most effective system we have discovered to enable people who hate one another to deal with one another and help one another.
The great virtue of a free market system is that it does not care what color people are; it does not care what their religion is.
It is the most effective system we have discovered to enable people who hate one another to deal with one another and help one another.
4/
The key insight of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations is misleadingly simple: if an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take place unless both believe they will benefit from it.
Most economic fallacies derive from the neglect of this simple insight, from...
The key insight of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations is misleadingly simple: if an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take place unless both believe they will benefit from it.
Most economic fallacies derive from the neglect of this simple insight, from...
... the tendency to assume that there is a fixed pie, that one party can gain only at the expense of another.
5/
Government has three primary functions.
It should provide for military defense of the nation.
It should enforce contracts between individuals.
It should protect citizens from crimes against themselves or their property. When government-- in pursuit of good intentions...
Government has three primary functions.
It should provide for military defense of the nation.
It should enforce contracts between individuals.
It should protect citizens from crimes against themselves or their property. When government-- in pursuit of good intentions...
...tries to rearrange the economy, legislate morality, or help special interests, the cost come in inefficiency, lack of motivation, and loss of freedom.
Government should be a referee, not an active player.
Government should be a referee, not an active player.
6/
The great achievements of civilization have not come from government bureaus.
Einstein didn’t construct his theory under order from a bureaucrat.
Henry Ford didn’t revolutionize the automobile industry that way.
In the only cases in which the masses have escaped from...
The great achievements of civilization have not come from government bureaus.
Einstein didn’t construct his theory under order from a bureaucrat.
Henry Ford didn’t revolutionize the automobile industry that way.
In the only cases in which the masses have escaped from...
... the kind of grinding poverty you’re talking about, the only cases in recorded history, are where they have had capitalism and largely free trade.
If you want to know where the masses are worse off, worst off, it’s exactly in the kinds of societies that depart from that.
If you want to know where the masses are worse off, worst off, it’s exactly in the kinds of societies that depart from that.
7/
One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results.
One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results.
8/
Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program.
Nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program.
9/
Many people want the government to protect the consumer.
A much more urgent problem is to protect the consumer from the government.
Many people want the government to protect the consumer.
A much more urgent problem is to protect the consumer from the government.
10/
Our minds tell us, and history confirms, that the great threat to freedom is the concentration of power.
Government is necessary to preserve our freedom, it is an instrument through which we can exercise our freedom; yet by concentrating power in political hands, it is...
Our minds tell us, and history confirms, that the great threat to freedom is the concentration of power.
Government is necessary to preserve our freedom, it is an instrument through which we can exercise our freedom; yet by concentrating power in political hands, it is...
... also a threat to freedom.
Even though the men who wield this power initially be of good will and even though they be not corrupted by the power they exercise, the power will both attract and form men of a different stamp.
Even though the men who wield this power initially be of good will and even though they be not corrupted by the power they exercise, the power will both attract and form men of a different stamp.
11/
The fundamental threat to freedom is power to coerce, be it in the hands of a monarch, a dictator, an oligarchy, or a momentary majority.
The preservation of freedom requires the elimination of such concentration of power to the fullest possible extent and the...
The fundamental threat to freedom is power to coerce, be it in the hands of a monarch, a dictator, an oligarchy, or a momentary majority.
The preservation of freedom requires the elimination of such concentration of power to the fullest possible extent and the...
... dispersal and distribution of whatever power cannot be eliminated — a system of checks and balances.
12/
I think that the Internet is going to be one of the major forces for reducing the role of government.
I think that the Internet is going to be one of the major forces for reducing the role of government.
13/
A free society releases the energies and abilities of people to pursue their own objectives.
A free society releases the energies and abilities of people to pursue their own objectives.
14/
The existence of a free market does not of course eliminate the need for government.
On the contrary, government is essential both as a forum for determining the "rule of the game" and as an umpire to interpret and enforce the rules decided on.
The existence of a free market does not of course eliminate the need for government.
On the contrary, government is essential both as a forum for determining the "rule of the game" and as an umpire to interpret and enforce the rules decided on.
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