[Speed Gibson,
Thursday November 16, 2006 at 10:45pm]
Milton Friedman, RIP
The passing of Milton Friedman has special meaning for me. His book (co-authored by his wife Rose) "Free to Choose" was the book that set my feet on the path to knowledge around 1980.
It was the depths of the Carter malaise: stagflation, high interest rates, gas lines, and hostages. I was confused by what was happening, searching for answers. I asked around, buying 3 books recommended to me, "Free to Choose" and two others:
It was quite the spread - a capitalist, a socialist, and a libertarian. I had taken a little economics in college, but I was otherwise apolitical.
I dismissed Harrington for lack of content. Each chapter would start with "as I will show" and end with "as I have shown" only he hadn't. His contention was that the large corporations set price umbrellas in the market, which didn't make much sense to me and still doesn't.
Ringer's book was a wild ride through America's heritage, but didn't really have answers beyond returning to the 19th century.
It was Milton and Rose Friedman that made sense, in part because they were great writers and could express their thoughts clearly. Socialists like to claim that theirs is the system of nuance and sophistication compared to the crudity of capitalism. The reverse is true.
It was the depths of the Carter malaise: stagflation, high interest rates, gas lines, and hostages. I was confused by what was happening, searching for answers. I asked around, buying 3 books recommended to me, "Free to Choose" and two others:
- "Decade of Decision" by Michael Harrington
- "Restoring the American Dream" by Robert Ringer
It was quite the spread - a capitalist, a socialist, and a libertarian. I had taken a little economics in college, but I was otherwise apolitical.
I dismissed Harrington for lack of content. Each chapter would start with "as I will show" and end with "as I have shown" only he hadn't. His contention was that the large corporations set price umbrellas in the market, which didn't make much sense to me and still doesn't.
Ringer's book was a wild ride through America's heritage, but didn't really have answers beyond returning to the 19th century.
It was Milton and Rose Friedman that made sense, in part because they were great writers and could express their thoughts clearly. Socialists like to claim that theirs is the system of nuance and sophistication compared to the crudity of capitalism. The reverse is true.