Mason mentioned this television program in the July LC thread and talked about how it changed his perspective things. Using the power of the internet, I was able to watch also. The series is excellent.

Friedman himself is an unquestionable genius. The skill he shows in answering questions and grasping what is really going on is truly impressive. The series was produced in 1980. It's really shocking to see how different the world was back then, and not just the hairstyles. A big part of the theme is free trade, and the advantages it holds over protectionism.

Half of the episode is Friedman on locations talking about issues and explaining them wonderfully. The second half is him fielding questions and strong criticisms from politicians, CEOs, labor organizers, other economists, etc. How many people today could get governors or CEOs of major firms on their show and have them actually talk about issues and not just spout talking points?

Friedman himself is a very interesting guy. He states that the purpose of this series is to show the ordinary people the advantages of freedom. He is a strong believer in that, but as Krugman points out, he doesn't take it "too far". He's not dogmatic or absolutist like many of his followers. In short, I think everyone will enjoy the series and I think we can make a lot of observations and discussion.

I'm picturing this thread as follows. I'll link an episode (there are 10), we'll watch it and discuss for a couple of days and then I'll link another one and repeat. You're gonna want to watch just to see who shows up on the distinguished panel of guests (future cabinet members!). I'm a little bit nervous about starting this now as I'll be out of town this week and don't want to pull a TomDemaine. But it's so good I'm eager to hear the thoughts of the many brilliant politards in here.

Without further adieu,
Episode 1: Power of the Market

Are there any black dudes in the show?

Not in episode 1! But during the episode where we go to the projects...

Btw, I just had the following internal dialogue:

Yay! Somebody responded to my thread!
Oh, it was Falcon :-/

Like I would ever listen to anything this man has to say, him being the architect of direct withholding, the practice of the federal government taking tax money directly out of your paycheck.

Just in case you were going to ask OP, I'm not going to go chapter by chapter through Mein Kampf either.

In before LirvA

Not five minutes in we get a good treat of Milton's style. He takes us to a garment factory in Chinatown. He starts by telling us the endearing story of his mother working in a similar factory when she first arrived in America. That factory allowed his mother to make money to live on while she learned the language and got setup in the new country.

But the factory should be shut down according to some. The pay is poor, the ventillation is poor, etc. But if it were shut down, who would benefit? Certainly not the workers who would no longer have these opportunities. The job looks crappy to us because we're rich. It looks good to them because they're poor and it's better than their other options.

OK so the choice is shut it down or let it exist however the owner's think they can make the most money?

Typical false-choice tactic by Friedman.

What you do is you have a minimum wage and environmental standards for workers. Maybe the owner makes a tad less so the f what? If he doesn't want to open a factory under those conditions he is free to choose not to.

I'd suggest watching the episode

Free to Choose is the absolute nuts. Mason turned me onto it as well and it had a similar impact on me. I've watched it many times and don't shy away from linking to it or quoting Friedman. I also got the book cause I loved it so much.

I have a young cousin and I'm going to be sending him a couple books and Free to Choose I burned to DVD and maybe he'll find it as valuable as I did.

You know who was instrumental in ending conscription in the US?


Friedman. He listed that as his greatest accomplishment.

Thomas Sowell, for one.

If you guys can't make it through the whole series, at least watch part 10 - how to stay free.

Milton Friedman believed that anyone who worked for a living should have the government come in and take their taxes UP FRONT.

Of course that very predictably, by design, allowed the government to get huge. This goes against everything Friedman says he believed in. If you learn about the man though you will find that he didn't really say what he believed.

He believed in turning people into slaves.