Milton Friedman - Do-Gooders And Special Interest

[666sigma]

Capitalism is not the problem.

The problem is leverage. Leverage is the lack of capital. Allowing people or businesses (Wall Street) to use excessive leverage is the problem. Forcing the public to pay for bad bets made using leverage is the problem. Not penalizing those making fraudulent transactions to take advantage of dumb government policies and regulations is wrong.

We need to take the "money" out of government, which is the opposite of what Obama and OWS crowd want.

[scienceatheism]

I always found it weird that wherever I go, in an American History class, they say the same shit over and over again, especially when they are talking about the 19th century and the Laissez Faire economics we had back then along with FDR who apparently saved us from destruction. I havnt heard anyone anywhere say anything different. I would like to hear a different view point from a damn Professor because they ALL say the same fucking thing as well as high school teachers.

[Goodatconnect4]

Friedman wasn't totally laissez-faire, but he's a good start. If you want to study laissez-faire, head to Mises*org where there is free literature on everything to do with the free market (I will happily provide reading lists).

[scienceatheism]

Really? I didnt know that. thank you though. And yeah provide a reading list. I want to learn a lot about Austrian Economics and Capitalism.

[Goodatconnect4]

@scienceatheism Ok, I'll PM you in a bit.

[Goodatconnect4]

@scienceatheism Could you make your channel available for me?

[fyrewolffe]

@scienceatheism

Go to LearnLiberty's channel, as it features people like Jeff Miron PhD, director of undergraduate studies in Economics at Harvard. You'll probably only find a Professor to speak such things there!

[666sigma]

@scienceatheism

FDR saved us from capitalism? The hallmark of a free economy is trade. Trade allows people to specialize and collaborate. This creates efficiencies.

Who is going to save us from FDR? Social Security is a Ponzi scheme. All of our social welfare programs are unfunded. The government has promised far more than the private sector can deliver, especially since it is pay as you go. Obama is the poster child for this problem because he spends now and assumes payment later.

[bungerman1000]

Why has the free market invisible hand led to the buying of politicians to form this too large government?

[fzqlcs]

@bungerman1000 It hasn't. That was accomplished by the perversion of capitalism -- crony capitalism or corporatism -- where various entities are able to routinely buy privilege and favors from politicians. The free market will work as Adam Smith says if political power brokers were impotent to affect it. Americans would need to elect Ron Paul or Gary Johnson to reverse current trends.

[grraadd]

do-gooders also known as "useful idiots" :-)

[TacticalCitySlicker]

Just learned a little something about Milton... Turns out he's not that much of a free market guy as I thought He's a fan of the Fed and he accepts the Keynesian style of economics which contradicts allot of beliefs he states of limited government.

The disconnect it seems, is that he thinks it's OK for the Gov to intervene in macro economics but to stay out of the micro...

[RPFS2008]

@TacticalCitySlicker

He was for abolishing the Fed

[TacticalCitySlicker]

@RPFS2008 Can you find a any proof of that? Because I couldn't ...

[Goodatconnect4]

@TacticalCitySlicker Granted, he was much older when he started advertising it, but here it is: watch?v=JL3FT0O4kYg

[TacticalCitySlicker]

@Goodatconnect4 Well better late than never I suppose...

That puts the Chicago school in the trash bin where it belongs.

Thanks.

[MrFreeLibertarian]

This just proves the corruptness of government schools. No matter what generation learns that free markets and less government are better for society, government school teachers are paid with YOUR money to indoctrinate another generation of children to believe the exact opposite and only a wave of failed government interventionist policies and the harm that they ALWAYS inflict will convince us otherwise, and then the cycle continues as another generation is indoctrinated.

[ShotDownInFlames2]

Massive

[SuperGuitarman69]

Another example.. A small business that did great autobody work after Obama and the environmental whackos got in, were slapped with (to continue to do what they already do) a mandate to buy a certain type of lights that didn't stimulate the paint fumes.. To light the space they needed 8 lights.. costing 15k a piece.. It ran them out of business..

[redsox1006]

My Main Man Milton

[hawaiidispenser]

I miss these days, when people could actually have a conversation on TV. Ratings means money and apparently faster-paced, more emotional conversations eventually won out because they draw in more viewers. Fitting in more commercials, creating more or longer interruptions also hurts.

[calctube]

Ever the defender of the free market- with a smile, no less.

[TheLegalImmigrant05]

@calctube "Ever the defender of the free market" Well, to be fair, there was one are in which he was a statist and against free markets. Unfortunately, that was the most important areas of them all: money. Friedman was a big fan of central banking.

[Mezey5]

@TheLegalImmigrant05 Wouldn't say he was a big fan of central banking, more like he was skeptical of other types of monetary policy and his question was what was the best system, not the perfect system.

[BroBroDude]

brilliantly straightforward

[jepkratz]

Profit is the natural reward for risking capital against potential loss to start and run an enterprise to begin with. If there is any real greed at all it is in lobbying, but before you blame the lobbyist consider - isn't it the very fact that the government CAN be manipulated, and that it CAN give special advantages that are the real problems?

[fzqlcs]

@jepkratz exactly right.

[jepkratz]

Electorate economic education and political involvement, competitive redistricting, campaign finance reform, and a constitutional amendment to limit the size and scope of GOVERNMENT are the real long term solutions!

[fzqlcs]

@jepkratz We don't need an amendment to limit the size and scope of government. We have them. The Ninth and Tenth Amendment. They only need to be respected. We don't need campaign reform. We need a separation of economics and state, removing the incentive for campaign funding entities to buy privilege or protection. As long as they have the power, corruption will occur. Yes, political involvement motivated by an educated understanding of economics would be a very good thing.

[jepkratz]

@fzqlcs It is the very fact that the 9th and 10th amendments are not being respected that some measure (I proposed a new, hopefully clarifying and enforceable amendment) is required to change the current procedures and processes of govt and bring it into compliance. I understand that if the existing are not respected, what difference would a new amendment make, but if we can not bring govt to heel and conform to the will of the people as expressed in the constitution, we are already lost.

[fzqlcs]

@jepkratz I think our only answer is for the people to insist elected officials agree to adopt The Enumerated Powers Act or be banished from office.

[jepkratz]

@fzqlcs Thank you. The Enumerated Powers Act was not on my radar. Ok, is it enough were it to be fully enacted? Wouldn't loose constructionists just cite whatever clause they feel appropriate? The problem being that they merely continue with loose constructionism - business as usual. It is interesting though to see the long term resistance of politicians to justify their legislation's constitutionality by simple clause citation.

[fzqlcs]

@jepkratz It would be fascinating to see them contort and twist straightforward language before our eyes. It would help the public see these scoundrels for who they really are. I think politicians realize this and such is at the foundation of their fear of EPA. Politicians should have their feet held to the fire on this issue. It is at the root of our nation's problems. It should be the cutting edge issue of the 2012 election.

[666sigma]

Milton is always brilliant in his simplicity. He lays waste to Obama and OWS crowd. The Tea Party, which has been villified by the media as racist and extremist, is the exact opposite. They are pragmatic, rational and logical. They know the government is going to be used by the moneyed interests to skew the markets in their direction.

Our founders were absolutely brilliant. It is a shame that most Americans don't realize it.

Pro-government = corruption and greed

[val5214]

the history of the ICC is a classic case to present to people a repeating pattern where special interests hijack the government using "do-gooders" to get what they want. It is also good because it lays out the history of how the government ruined the personal rail industry and railroads in general. thanks for this video, a sure classic

[asknudsen]

All the people have their eyes glossed over setting the stage for todays talk shows. Bring on Jerry Springer!

We want to be entertained, don't confuse us with responsibilities to self-govern, just let us eat cake!

[bigfatgoider]

Who is going to be the next F. A. Hayek, or Milton Friedman? Thomas Sowell is brilliant but he's in his 80s.

[flynn2008]

@bigfatgoider

Johan Norberg(maybe), Tom Woods, Peter Schiff, and there are alot of libertarians on youtube.

[bigfatgoider]

@flynn2008 I decided to check out some of Tom Woods Speeches on youtube. Thanks for the recommendation. Tom Woods shows great potential as the next generation of free market thinkers.

[flynn2008]

@bigfatgoider

:)

[Malthus0]

@bigfatgoider I agree, I think that Johan Norberg has already steped into the shoes of Friedman's popular exponent role with his documentarys & books. Defending Global Capitalism was a international bestseller.

[Panpiper]

"Too much government intervention..." And that is 36 years ago. We have a LOT more government now.

[bisek]

@Panpiper And less in some ways. The deregulation of the trucking industry that Friedman is talking about later happened and was a great success. In 1975, regulations prevented competition in beer brewing. Global trade was less free than now. Many states still had sodomy laws. There were 25 income tax brackets and the top rate was 70%. There's still plenty of work to do, but let's not take for granted the victories we have achieved.

[Zimnyification]

<3

[bisek]

great, as always.