Milton Friedman - Path to Socialism 2

[eyeammi]

If left to their own devices, big business can (& does) enslave the working class. Unchecked greed & profit at the top drives down wages to a point past which refusing the offer isn't an option. Just look at sweat shops. Those workers can't say no to their wages because the other option is starvation. A reasonable level of government regulation is needed to balance that out via elected officials, (by the people) not unrestricted, unelected, unrepresentative CEOs.

Can you vote a CEO from power?

[tikkaman100]

@eyeammi That is silly on it's face. Such a system cannot self-sustain. In a truly free market society, all industry becomes competitive. Good workers will gravitate toward employers who treat them fairly. More importantly everyone has a much better opportunity to become their own boss via entrepreneurship. And yes CEO's CAN be voted from power. And often are. Success talks.

[syghur]

@eyeammi You vote a CEO out of power by selling your stock. Or not purchasing it in the first place. If a CEO cannot produce a profit, he will be fired. Capitalism is the most efficient form of democracy.

[MuleKist]

How come he dont talk about the different KINDS of capitalism? And if capitalisim works so well, how come we are still bailing out the big banks?And what about all those poor folk who lost their pensions cause of wall st speculation?

[MuleKist]

How come he dont talk about the different KINDS of capitalism?

[ningilaith]

@MuleKist Don't mistake Capitalism and Mercantilism. Bailing out banks is in NO WAY part of Capitalism.

[stellarshore]

whats the music in the intro? thanks

[rosihantu1]

1:14 to 1:25 is brilliant

[sunflowerofpeace]

YES!!! I keep saying this civilization is going to self-destruct by the way of gov...1984 read this small book....we are serfs already,whether people realize it or not.The more laws there are the less people have to act responsibly...

[BeethovenWannabe]

The interviewer was really good at posing questions any normal person today would ask. The sad thing is that you have to actually explain to people today what freedom is.

[guatay]

Milton Friedman...my hero!

[sunflowersmorning]

If you agree with Milton Friedman, then please support Peter Schiff for congress. Just google his name. He warned the American people of the financial and housing crisis to come years when he wrote Crash Proof published in 2007.

[selfrealizedexile]

One of the common objections you hear about anarchy is that there would be chaos whereby the strong rape the weak. That is actually EXACTLY what we have today wherein the strong infact are raping the weak sheep. Historically, these 'strong' have been known as GOVERNMENTS whereby their "right" to rule is fundamentally their ability to oppress.

[ThisAintKyle]

@selfrealizedexile Check out 'The american form of government' it's right up your alley

[selfrealizedexile]

@ThisAintKyle

So this monopoly on taxation and force is going to self-limit itself out of the goodness of its heart?

That is beyond naive and history has shown it time and again.

[ThisAintKyle]

@selfrealizedexile No dude did you even watch the video? Come on let's have a real discussion. Also, citing 'history' is one of the basic logical fallacies. FAIL.

[selfrealizedexile]

protection of Liberty from something that is diametrically opposed to it.

[selfrealizedexile]

possible or sustainable. It really all depends on the morality of the people and the conditions of that society (is there a lot of land to spread out, is technology such that it really isn't possible for gov't to inrude in your life physically or electronically that much?).

But, from an intellectual standpoint, the type of govt Libertarians are really asking for will never come from a coercive entity such as gov't. Liberty must be preserved by each individual actor; you will never get

[selfrealizedexile]

The type of gov't Libertarians like Friedman want is impossible and inherently contradictory. If you were to have this minimally coercive only to protect people's civil liberties, it might as well be simply a market arrangement in an anarchistic system. What happens in reality from the beginning of a libertarian constitution like the United States was is you get an eventual democratic (socialistic) takeover that leads to tyranny which unmasks the facade of a libertarian gov't ever being

[jeremyraybrown]

Well Milton, the government train is continuing.

[shanepaulcoward]

It's so true. Look at what's happening in the UK. Swamped by immigration and an ever increasing encroachment on civil liberties. It's like a ratchet that just keeps getting tighter and tighter. The current terror threat is amplifying and speeding up the process. It's all going to end in tears!

[rrrrsssssssa2]

Socialism, ALL ABOARD!  Next stop communism.

[clarkisabeast]

Evidently right-wingers have always been paranoid about Socialism. Friedman is incredibly intelligent, however he comes across as being paranoid about serfdom. We haven't gone Socialist yet. The GOP wants us to think we are though. When you think with emotion it is easy to see things the wrong way. Some regulation and oversight does not lead to Socialism.

[CravingGod]

I disagree. I believe we have been under increasingly Socialist government since the early 1900's. FDR and Wilson were big movers in this direction. Examples of our socialism include: SOCIAL Secrity, Medicare, Medicaid, wellfare given by the government of any sort, GM, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, etc.

People try to add regulations to keep people from getting hurt. But John Stossel showed that when you try to control others for the good of all, people dont listen and you crete more chaos.

[chrispollock]

@CravingGod mixed capitalism is NOT socialism. if usa was socialist, all resources would be placed under govt. control in times of plenty, not simply limited measures to create social safety net brought on by crisis while retaining private industry and relatively free trade

[bochap21]

"Some regulation and oversight does not lead to Socialism."

Unfortunately, its not just SOME regulation. Its A LOT OF regulation.

[dirksilver]

@clarkisabeast no but lots of regulation and oversight does

distortions in the market always have huge consequences i.e. the housing collapse

[wilsonspaulding]

Free enterprise is an institution where the people who have the greatest drive to succeed in life do so by providing the very best product at the most affordable price.

[MillionthUsername]

It's too bad that Friedman portrayed liberty as a preference rather than as a right.

I wonder if he was a closet anarchist because he says he doesn't "advocate" the removal of gov't, rather than a more forceful statement about the formal necessity of it. I think he was smart enough to realize that claiming the state to be necessary would contradict the very notion of liberty as well as his knowledge of economic laws.

[JrDiNisi]

"Government is an institution where the people who have the greatist drive to get power over their fellow men, get in the position of controlling them"

an amazing quote for today, as the government continues to take more control over us.

[grnt25]

Oh Milton, luckily you have no idea how much free stuff the gov't shoved down the throat of its adoring masses. Tax slavery for 50% of its citizens so 50% could live of the fruits of our labor

[Aliothemage]

It is such a tragedy that Milton Friedman couldn't live forever. Humanity lost such a great mind when he died.

[joemne]

oops sorry aliot i meant to press thumbs up.

yes it is a tragedy indeed.

[Vitaminous]

At least we have Stossels and Pauls.

[surnbe]

The difference between Government and Tyranny is dosage.

[UcanbeGOD]

Tyranny is tyranny no matter the dosage.

[johnwags123]

THAT IS A GREAT LINE!!!

[idahoman325]

look at what we have now , a man who is more selfish then any other , hell we have a entire city filled with them. shame on us

[kev2596]

Great, great man. I will be arguing with by socialist friends for many years to come.

[johngaltexpres]

I too argue/debate, and I can never explain myself so clearly as Milton Friedman.

[mrjoje]

sexy Vid thanks

[maltie4]

Milton Freidman is a genius. Now or challenge is to curcumvent the socialist law that Obama is imposing! 

I think a lot of this green movement will turn into the waste Milton is talking about.

[Offatwork]

Government is known, by a land-slide, to create more pollution than private enterprise. Why? Because of the inefficiency of government.

Anyone who supports the "green" movement through forced intervention are commonly called watermelons because they're green on the outside but red (socialist) on the inside.

[whatever678]

HA! That's awesome!

[richardcadbury]

A mixed metaphor at the end there.

Trains don't travel on roads.

[DonVoghano]

One of the great contradictions i have found in US culture is this constant recitation of the mantra "we are the freest country in the world, the herald of Democracy" and on the other hand the paranoid fear of "the Government" and how it plots to hide aliens and other such shady business. So, make up your mind once and for all, is your country free and democratic, allowing the public to have a real say in the actions of government, or are you slaves to a tyrannical oligarchy of bureaucrats?

[DonVoghano]

Now if the first option is true have no fear of govt intervention in the economy, if it is truly accountable to the public it will not act to suppress it.

If the latter is true then undermine the authoritarian nature of the govt and force it to be more accountable, and stop repeating grade school propaganda about how free you are.

[losheva]

beautiful words,in friedman philosophy is thought that the market, capital, competition is the answer to everything, but the word competitive does not mean your life my death? for Americans the capital first of all, before even their mother, now the pity that their beloved capital is virtually in the hands of the Chinese, say paradoxical, the great democratic country that has done to enrich the communist monster,democracy exists thanks to the people (French Revolution) not for the capital

[flynn2008]

I recommend reading a few history books before citing where American democracy came from. Actually with massive bail out and inflation of U.S currency, China is actually worse off holding the treasury debts.

[gatersaw]

That's interesting Flynn. Peter Schiff wants to default on our debt. That would leave China 600billion short. China would have to save every penny they earn in a year to make it up. In actuality they would take 10 years to save up that amount. USA would crush China in the event of default because USA has 13trillion GDP vs China's 3.2trillion.

[johnwags123]

you're mixing up annual income with balances. china has enough foreign reserve balances to absorb the loss. the us and china have a symbiotic relationship.

[Avarice176]

I dont think its as necessarily black and white as u make it out to be. I think that when Americans say that they "fear the gov't"... it's cause (imo) that slowly but surely, the country IS moving away from being the "freeest country." So I wouldn't say that i "Fear" the gov't, but i wouldn't be surpised if in the near future there is a genuine "fear."

"When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty."-Thomas Jefferson

[Jdlifsey]

the late Senator Barry Goldwater said, "Remember that a government big enough to give you everything you want is also big enough to take away everything you have."

"The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money." -- Alexis de Tocqueville

"When the people find that they can vote themselves money from the Treasury, that will herald the end of the republic." --Benjamin Franklin

[croat88]

Damn, those are some great quotes

[ArgoNunya]

They are great quotes! But you may want to research the attributes (definitely on the first and last ones). It was actually Gerald Ford that said, "A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have" - often incorrectly attributed to Thomas Jefferson as well. I Goldwater did paraphrase this ideology but I am not sure if he attributed it to Ford. The last one is worth doing a search on as well, since links can't be posted here.

[Jdlifsey]

Liberals believe that Republicans are for CEOs having total power.

Republicans believe that Liberals are for government having total power.

CEOs wouldn't be as potentially evil as a ill-intentioned government bureaucrat that can pass laws and has the military and the police.

[LibertyPen]

Absolutely right. Folks should not be distracted. CEOs cannot take your liberty, but government can.

[amog41389]

@LibertyPen Ironically both assume more power today than they would in a free-market. Without the fed corps would not have as much financial support and small businesses would flourish.

[jabiv25]

@LibertyPen Government is largely influenced by large corporations. TARP went disproportionately to corporations; why? Because they contributed largely and mostly to Obama's campaign. We've been lulled into thinking this is a fight to the death between liberals and conservatives; not correct. Any vital system needs both forces in play. This necessary tension, however, has been short-circuited by the collectivist forces of corporations. Both Reps and Dems were bought long ago.

[NobiscumDeus1]

@LibertyPen CEO's can take out your country as they can allied with the government to do so.

[drd105]

@LibertyPen what's worse, is that corporate power comes from mergers in which they exchange access to government-enforced monopoly powers for innovation of new comers to the markets. Once the government stops enforcing monopoly power, corporations would be only as powerful as they are useful.

[libere]

@drd105 Government TRIED TO STOP MONOPOLIES WITH ANTI TRUST LAWS which were all but erroded away under this anti government craze- How can you tell me after all that we just saw with the problems dereulation caused that WE NEED MORE OF THE STUFF THAT ALMOST KILLED US???

[libere]

@LibertyPen VERY WRONG!!!! CEO'S can enslave us all AND THEY ARE!!!! LOOK AT GAS PRICES!!! Look at the INSURANCE COMPANIES !! Look at BANKS !!! Look at the Monopolies that take over segments of the markets- Not too much altruism coming from these people!! WAKE UP!!!! WE CAN AT LEAST VOTE OUT PEOPLE IN GOVERNMENT!!! Corporations are insured to kill us all !!!

[elvisfan22]

@libere 1) Gas companies charge outrageous prices from the help of liberal dems who have instituted an inner monopoly. Even when we TALK, not drill, but TALK about drilling on US soil, gas prices plummet from fear! 2) All that must be done is for everyone to consume 10% less gas for only a short time; this would force gas companies to drop prices. However your alternative is to enforce a lifetime of socialism! One month of driving a little less OR NAZI socialism? And you choose Nazi socialism!

[tikkaman100]

@elvisfan22 You fool, how long does this price drop last? Is it not true that oil companies generally profit about 9 cents per gallon?  They do all the work then government grabs 70 cents per gallon just because you bought it, no risk to them. I know you think you are conservative but you know not what you speak. Remember, gas is a commodity, like corn and wheat and iron. Profit margins are typically meager in commodities. Net profit dollars seem high because EVERYONE buys commodities.

[libere]

@LibertyPen There's the whole problem right there! That's a complete misinterpritation. Corporations ABSOLUTLY CAN AND WILL take away our freedoms every chance they get for their bottom line. They can even manipulate "reality" and delude the masses with advertizing and other wapons of mass deception! They slowly fool people into a self imposed slavery. We can hold government accountable but what can you do when corporations buy their right to distroy the planet and pillage society?

[elvisfan22]

@libere Name a CONSTITUTIONAL freedom that corporations are taking away? As far as "deception", like liberal socialists (Obama) don't use propaganda??? And yes you can hold corporations accountable and can do so OVERNIGHT, however you can't with big governemnt. It takes wars and death to overturn big governement; it takes a weekend of boycotting a companies product to run them into the ground.

[davidmesaaz]

@Jdlifsey I think that one of the big myths is that Big government and big business are polar opposites. But the reality is that big business loves big government. Big business hates uncertainty and there is nothing more certain than death and taxes. That is why the big business endorsed obamacare GE endorsed cap and trade. Governments contracts are guaranteed profits with out the messy need for competition or finding out what the consumer wants.

[hieronomy]

@Jdlifsey

Liberal vs. Conservative is more accurately -- us vs. them -- ppl kick it up a notch will ya

thats an excuse for stupidity !

[hennypenny247]

@Jdlifsey

That's right, because CEOs don't claim to be doing it for your own good. There is no limit to the evil that can be done in the name of some good cause. Don't forget, Obama and his closest advisors are Alinskyites who believe the ends justify the means. He truly DOES NOT CARE if his policies harm individual Americans, as long as he believes they advance his goal of creating a utopian society.

[bookhound63]

For the first time, I find myself thanking God for Government inefficiency.

[007crane]

isnt that amazing that many years ago his words spoken can hold water today!!!! He is looking at the big picture unlike the last bush

[desisk]

Well said, Milton!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Chicagospalla]

What in commentary defines who and what we should be as Americans? Are we a nation of anarchists? Where is the patriotism, virtue or honor in these depraved statements? I am not blind to governmental foibles, the last eight years have helped to define them, but to advocate circumventing the law is by definition criminal.

[LibertyPen]

What about when the federal government is lawless itself, asserting powers not authorized by the Constitution? It is certainly not unpatriotic to circumvent laws for which there was no legitimate authority to create. Our revolution was about liberty, not subservience. In my view, patriotism is about loyalty to the principles of Constitution, not conformity to the whims of tyrants.

[djangothecat]

You need to listen to him once more. He's saying that if the government is unconstitutionally infringing on your freedom and overstepping their bounds then it is moral for you to try to get around the unjust laws. They're taking us on a path to enslavement and getting around the law sometimes is self-defense. He doesn't mean commit crimes, just slow the government from taking our freedom from us. But America didn't listen and it's too late now. We're a couple years from some scary stuff.

[ThisAintKyle]

@Chicagospalla Don't get ahead of yourself - we are not a nation of anarchists. Instead, there is a clearly defined and extremely important role for the government to play in civilized society.

[gregrichins]

@Chicagospalla You're taking a view of circumventing the law for things like murder and rape. Doing so would be a bad idea certainly; but on the other hand, if you think that's what Friedman was advocating you're an idiot. There are legal ways of circumventing the law. One example that comes readily to mind is that the very wealthy in this country go to CPAs to have their taxes prepared in order to get around tax law.

[ariuszarim]

@Chicagospalla Advocating circumventing the law is just speech, just talk. We, in America, can talk all we like. Actually circumventing the law, that's criminal. Don't confuse the word for the thing.

[yadranko]

That was a great point!

[Auggie56]

Danger Will Robinson ! There goes our freedom !

[willthethrill0001]

Nice

[LeGioNoFZioN]

wonderful