Free to Choose: A Personal Statement
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- Create Date：2021-06-28 09:53:37
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Milton Friedman
- ISBN：0156334607
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Reviews
Elinore
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Scary to think where all this could take us。
Niklas Anzinger
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Whatever one may think of Friedman’s ideas， it’s hard to deny the intellectual honesty， clarity of thought and genuine attempt to bridge partisan gaps that underpin this book。 Our public debates would be more civil if Friedman’s style were more the norm， more enlightened if we debated his actual ideas - not the caricatured versions commonly critiqued as „neoliberal“。
Concepcion
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Lots of research and knowledge。
Rogério Lucas
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Neste livro， Milton e Rose Friedman expõem sua defesa de uma sociedade livre baseada em uma economia de mercado。 A leitura é agradabilíssima e fácil compreensão。 Os autores abordam diversos temas e possuem belos e fortes argumentos。 É um livro que mostra que o liberalismo não é contra os pobres e sim， a melhor forma de aumentar a qualidade de vida de toda a sociedade。 É um belo livro。 Possui uma série de TV que acompanha o livro: "Free to Choose"。 Vale muito a pena assistir， ao final dos episódi Neste livro， Milton e Rose Friedman expõem sua defesa de uma sociedade livre baseada em uma economia de mercado。 A leitura é agradabilíssima e fácil compreensão。 Os autores abordam diversos temas e possuem belos e fortes argumentos。 É um livro que mostra que o liberalismo não é contra os pobres e sim， a melhor forma de aumentar a qualidade de vida de toda a sociedade。 É um belo livro。 Possui uma série de TV que acompanha o livro: "Free to Choose"。 Vale muito a pena assistir， ao final dos episódios há um debate com visões contrárias e concordantes， que enriquece demais as ideias expostas por Friedman。 。。。more
Y。 Ho
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This is a good buy。 Get it！
Gabriel Dimitrov
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Подробно ревю в Patreon。
Ally
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I was bowled over by Free to Choose: A Personal Statement 。
Scott Holstad
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I spent two damn hours writing a review for this， one I thought was one of my better recent ones， only to go give it a star and while doing so， the damn thing disappeared！ I usually write longer ones in Word on a desktop， but this was one my phone so I'm screwed。 Often， drafts get saved。 Not this time。 So I'm not going to waste my time rewriting it， but I have many good reasons for this rating and I'm sorry no one will see them。 I spent two damn hours writing a review for this， one I thought was one of my better recent ones， only to go give it a star and while doing so， the damn thing disappeared！ I usually write longer ones in Word on a desktop， but this was one my phone so I'm screwed。 Often， drafts get saved。 Not this time。 So I'm not going to waste my time rewriting it， but I have many good reasons for this rating and I'm sorry no one will see them。 。。。more
Thanh Do
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Some of the notes for things that I found interesting Chap 1: Market/Price SystemPrice system not only makes trading fair but also encourage harmony and peace globallyA lead pencil combines seconds of thousands of people who produce separate parts， when you buy， you trade some time of yours （productivity） to seconds of thousands of people around the worldThe markets let producers know how much and how to produce goods When people have no other way to vote， they vote with their feet （they migrate Some of the notes for things that I found interesting Chap 1: Market/Price SystemPrice system not only makes trading fair but also encourage harmony and peace globallyA lead pencil combines seconds of thousands of people who produce separate parts， when you buy， you trade some time of yours （productivity） to seconds of thousands of people around the worldThe markets let producers know how much and how to produce goods When people have no other way to vote， they vote with their feet （they migrate）Chap 2: Gov ControllingPrice mechanism = invisible hand --> everyone serves self interest but serving customers interest --> profitBritain quota + tariffs + heavy duties --> war and smuggling1868 Japan followed suit for preceding 300 years closed borders --> lords and servants --> entrepreneurship --> standardize weaving 1948 India independence --> follow free market， protected weaving workers from industrialization = subsidize cloth --> prevent growth， using resources which could be used to support other industries to subsidize an industry that wouldn’t exist without the governmentGov can intervene in providing infrastructure but not setting the outline for productionGov easier in smaller and homogeneous countries Sing， Denmark， Switzerland， etc。No monopolies would last long without gov assistance （subsidies etc） gov actually creates monopolies with anti trustComplete free trade is politically not feasible because we are concerned with our role in producing 1 product even though its better for the general interestChap 3: CrisisBank of United States failed --> Fed saved by merging with other banks and guaranteeJPM didn’t buy --> closedInflation today derived policy from the deflation 1929-1933 --> gov doesn’t want depression so they would rather deal with inflationJohn Maynard Keynes offered a way out: money quantity doesn’t matter， a particular sector of investment is important （autonomous spending - deficit spending by gov， individuals building houses， businesses buying factory and machinery） - pump primingJMK if would have lived another decades --> advise on the length of gov spending --> post war inflationary period would be avoidedDepression convinced people gov intervention is necessary but in fact gov is the source of instability。JMK is great but the system is not because it demands the right man， like Soviet Wars create myth （after WWII） that govs are efficient， at least in the united states and britain （not so much in losing countries）Chap 4: Gov interventionChurchill and Lloyd George （Britain） with pension plan --> FDR increase gov spending to solve unemployment， along with pension， welfare ， etc。 --> bureaucratic gov growingBronx 3/4 are on welfare --> people afraid to take jobs bc they might lose the jobs long before they can get back onto welfare， families with the dad not working or without the dad are better off financially --> demotivate people to work But accepting welfare is getting owned by the gov （rules）Using tax papers money to train unemployed people are not effective because it uses other people's money and the purposes determined by a third partyWelfare system destroys the private charity which is more effective and compassionate which usually finds the right peopleChap 9: Dealing with inflationBefore US was established， tobacco was used in Virginia， Carolinas as gold， men rolling 100 kg to pay for transportation of their brides arriving from overseas Money has tendency to grow --> inflationTaxation without representation: Tax break --> people getting into higher earning brackets --> higher tax + inflation --> less consumption powerHigher wages were caused by inflationGov blaming imports as the cause of inflation but in fact the exchange rate caused and reflect the inflation on the US （fx depreciates）Price and wages control only make inflation worse （strikes， etc。 --> groups hurt other groups）Germany 1945 devastated by the War， controlled by the Alliances （France， US， Britain ， Soviet Union） --> control wages and prices --> currency lost its value， inflation， people use barter to trade （primitive）Cure: 1948 ludwig erhard introduced Deutsche mark， abolished almost all controls on a Sunday， when the offices of Alliance's nations were closed --> back to top economy of Europe in 10 years。During American Civil War， the North overran printing press location of the south --> inflation stops for 2 weeks until the south found another place to set it up again （normally 4% a month）Japan starting from 1971， increased money supply --> inflation starting to catch up --> in 1972， seeing inflation --> cut monetary supply --> 1973 less money supply from central bank but inflation climbed up --> hard recession， after that inflation dropped again， taking 5 years to take inflation under control again 。。。more
Alex Watson
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I love this book because it makes very sound arguments AND it provides solutions to important problems。 From now on， when someone asks me what I believe as far as economics and politics go， I will just tell them to read this book。 10/10**note: I did not quite through the last couple of chapters because I had to return the book to the library。
Pedro Carvalho
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Not an easy book to read when you know too little about economics and countries legislations but the ideas， arguments and points of view are very interesting and well justified （most concrete examples and applications of the ideology referred forward to the USA 60 to 40 years ago）。 It also has a lot of information/history regarding the political and economic paths of many countries during the last 100 years。 In general the book is worth reading because it gives you useful information based on th Not an easy book to read when you know too little about economics and countries legislations but the ideas， arguments and points of view are very interesting and well justified （most concrete examples and applications of the ideology referred forward to the USA 60 to 40 years ago）。 It also has a lot of information/history regarding the political and economic paths of many countries during the last 100 years。 In general the book is worth reading because it gives you useful information based on the liberalism ideology that will reinforce your argumentative power and critical thougth on the political， social and mainly economic areas。 。。。more
Cara
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Wow， this took a while to get through but boy， was it worth it and made me question why did I not major in Economics in school because I have just discovered， long after I'd made a career in a completely unrelated field， that I LOVE ECONOMICS。 Is this the Milton Friedman effect？ Is it too late to go back to school now？ So many thoughts！Also， I wish I had read this sooner。 Would have saved me from my cringeworthy lalaland years as a know-it-all Marxist teen。Going to attempt Adam Smith now that I Wow， this took a while to get through but boy， was it worth it and made me question why did I not major in Economics in school because I have just discovered， long after I'd made a career in a completely unrelated field， that I LOVE ECONOMICS。 Is this the Milton Friedman effect？ Is it too late to go back to school now？ So many thoughts！Also， I wish I had read this sooner。 Would have saved me from my cringeworthy lalaland years as a know-it-all Marxist teen。Going to attempt Adam Smith now that I don't feel so much like a fish out of water。 。。。more
Satyaki Upadhyay
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YouTube videoswww。freetochoosenetwork。org YouTube videoswww。freetochoosenetwork。org 。。。more
Martina
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Skvělé čtení zvláště v době nárůstu levicových politických tendencí napříč kontinenty。
Ernesto
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Definitivamente no es un libro divertido pero sí está lleno de ideas interesantes。 Friedman obviamente es un tipo sumamente inteligente y al serlo， construye argumentos persuasivos sobre sus ideas libertarias。 Hay mucho en este libro que me convence， aunque hay otros aspectos que no me queda claro si funciona la realidad como Friedman la pinta。 Coincido en que siempre deben de buscarse las soluciones más sencillas y menos elaboradas posibles， dejando que los individuos y el mercado solucionen pr Definitivamente no es un libro divertido pero sí está lleno de ideas interesantes。 Friedman obviamente es un tipo sumamente inteligente y al serlo， construye argumentos persuasivos sobre sus ideas libertarias。 Hay mucho en este libro que me convence， aunque hay otros aspectos que no me queda claro si funciona la realidad como Friedman la pinta。 Coincido en que siempre deben de buscarse las soluciones más sencillas y menos elaboradas posibles， dejando que los individuos y el mercado solucionen problemas por sí mismos cuando puedan。 También coincido en lo nociva que puede ser una actitud paternalista del estado， llevando a políticas públicas que infrinjan en la libertad de individuos a pesar de ser bien intencionadas。 En lo que estoy en desacuerdo con Friedman， a pesar de no poder ponerlo tan elocuentemente como él podría， es el poder de hacer bien del estado。 Creo que hay roles que debe jugar el estado para mejorar el bienestar de su gente y no limitarse a garantizar libertades individuales。 Debe hacerlo de manera inteligente para ofrecer más soluciones que problemas， ya que cualquier intervención genera consecuencias no deseadas。 Pero no porque sea difícil， deben dejarse de intentar implementar políticas con el fin de aliviar la pobreza， combatir el cambio climático， incentivar el crecimiento económico， etc。 。。。more
Jimmy N
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A bit outdated， but still relevant even in 2021。 Milton Friedman talks about the dangers of bigger government。 "Any society that aims for equality before liberty ends up with neither equality or liberty""How many American's does it take to screw in a light bulb？ Answer: Five; one to screw in the bulb， four to fill out the environmental impact and OSHA reports。" A bit outdated， but still relevant even in 2021。 Milton Friedman talks about the dangers of bigger government。 "Any society that aims for equality before liberty ends up with neither equality or liberty""How many American's does it take to screw in a light bulb？ Answer: Five; one to screw in the bulb， four to fill out the environmental impact and OSHA reports。" 。。。more
Manuel Branco
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5 estrelas。 Mesmo pessoas que sejam zeros na área económica conseguem perceber o caminho que o brilhante Friedman tenta traçar para a prosperidade。 Um dos melhores livros que já li。
Drew Smith
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I enjoyed this as an intro to libertarianism。 The Friedman’s articulate their beliefs clearly and concisely。 As a younger reader I had to lean heavily on a somewhat weak understanding of US financial history in the 70s which the Friedman’s reference heavily （publication was 1980）， but I think this book is still well worth a read。 I listened to it as an audiobook and had no trouble following their arguments。
Ravi Nuxoll
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Highly insightful。A couple highlights: Frieman's point about government intervention distorting valuable free-market signals。 For example， the point about the price ceiling on gasoline。 A higher price on gasoline would’ve given us the natural incentive us to innovate to find cheaper alternatives。 Currently we're addicted to oil， and it feels like this could've been stymied if we'd had proper incentives to research renewables or even biofuels earlier。Another fundamental idea is that unions use th Highly insightful。A couple highlights: Frieman's point about government intervention distorting valuable free-market signals。 For example， the point about the price ceiling on gasoline。 A higher price on gasoline would’ve given us the natural incentive us to innovate to find cheaper alternatives。 Currently we're addicted to oil， and it feels like this could've been stymied if we'd had proper incentives to research renewables or even biofuels earlier。Another fundamental idea is that unions use their power to restrict the supply of workers。 This drives up the price for their services。 This is why medical care is so expensive。 This can also explain why overcrowding in schools。 Although Milton has more to say on the subject of public education that is interesting。I wouldn't do anyone the disservice of trying to summarize Friedman in just a few words。 I highly recommend people across the breadth of the political spectrum give this book a try。 。。。more
Morten Hovland
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Old school， not my cup of tea
Datschneids
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I found this in the thrift rack and figured what the hell。 This was primarily a review for me on the conservative mindset at the time this was written。 I was particularly interested in thinking about how things have changed since then， and trying to consider how the authors would react to such changes， which， in my opinion， call for altered positions on the part of conservatives in a variety of areas。 Online security， for one， was something that Friedman could not have forseen at the time。 It wa I found this in the thrift rack and figured what the hell。 This was primarily a review for me on the conservative mindset at the time this was written。 I was particularly interested in thinking about how things have changed since then， and trying to consider how the authors would react to such changes， which， in my opinion， call for altered positions on the part of conservatives in a variety of areas。 Online security， for one， was something that Friedman could not have forseen at the time。 It was interesting。 In theory， much of this makes sense。 In actuality， it is certainly written from a priveleged persepective。 Pretty dry but on to the next one。 。。。more
Ondrisko
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I rather listen to Milton Friedman than to read him。
M
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Finally， completed it。 After nearly eight months， I have been able to complete this book。 What an eye opener this book is。 As relevant as it was in 80s。My primary reason for picking up this book was to understand what does liberalism/neoliberalism means。 And does it deserve the hate that currently gets？ After reading this book， the answer is a definite no。 No person in his/her right mind will dispute the ideals that this book advocates for。 They may raise questions on the means to upheld those i Finally， completed it。 After nearly eight months， I have been able to complete this book。 What an eye opener this book is。 As relevant as it was in 80s。My primary reason for picking up this book was to understand what does liberalism/neoliberalism means。 And does it deserve the hate that currently gets？ After reading this book， the answer is a definite no。 No person in his/her right mind will dispute the ideals that this book advocates for。 They may raise questions on the means to upheld those ideals but not the ideals itself。Presently， Milton Friedman is considered to be one of the fathers of neoliberalism。 But reading this book， one will understand that he is just an advocate of classical liberalism。 Particularly， the liberalism of Adam Smith and Thomas Jefferson that believed in limited government and greater individual freedom。It warns against printing press driven growth， lobbyists， and a new class （academicians， news media， and bureaucrats） who derives its livelihood solely from government。 After four decades， we can clearly see how prescient those warnings were。The best part of the book is that it not only illustrates the problems that arise from big government but also provided possible solutions to those problems。 Though I have to say that these solutions might not be so relevant anymore。 Still， it provides good pointers。 Particularly， in area of education and taxation。The only problematic part of this book is that it completely ignores the other factors。 Particularly， concentration of capital and distortive power it possesses。 Also， the role of technology， culture， and geography in defining the policies of the State。 These are the areas where the book lacks any depth and possibly， the reason why Milton Friedman and liberalism gets so much derision in the present era。Still taking all this into consideration， we must not forget the basic truth he brings out that the greatest threat to human freedom is the concentration of power， whether in the hands of government or anyone else。 。。。more
António
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Excelente livro de política económica com provas dadas em situações práticas
Richard Johnson
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Overview: A very powerful message is contained within this book and the companion videos on YouTube。 My key takeaway is this: when society tries to do something good （increase minimum wage） for many good reasons， paradoxically， they end up doing great harm to the very people they are trying to help？！ How can this be。 Search Google for a 3 minute video on Milton speaking on minimum wage。 The answer: the well meaning policy makers don't actually understand the second-order impacts of their policie Overview: A very powerful message is contained within this book and the companion videos on YouTube。 My key takeaway is this: when society tries to do something good （increase minimum wage） for many good reasons， paradoxically， they end up doing great harm to the very people they are trying to help？！ How can this be。 Search Google for a 3 minute video on Milton speaking on minimum wage。 The answer: the well meaning policy makers don't actually understand the second-order impacts of their policies。How do you solve the problem？ Simple: keep regulation to a minimum。 Let the free markets be free。 Keep Government's role to preventing harm。 Let individuals make their own decisions and they will find ways to increase the pie and create win-win outcomes。Reliance on the freedom of the people to control their own lives in accordance with their own values is the surest way to achieve the full potential of a great society。（a） Economic freedom is a requisite to political freedom。 It also creates a checks and balance on power。 If pollical and economic power are in the same hands， tyranny will not be far behind（b） 1776 is the year that both Wealth of Nations and the Declaration of Independence （and the steam engine！）。 WoN gives us the idea that if everyone does what's best for themselves， everyone is better off as an unintended result。 DoI tells us that every man is created equal， and is entitles to follow his own values， except where his action may be of harm to others。 That the individual is sovereign。 These two （three） developments propelled humanity into a new age of increased population， and increased per capita output per person that has never been seen before in history。（c） Free markets are powerful。 There power is in the voluntary nature of the exchanges。 If the exchange is not voluntary people can choose not to do it。 If they choose to proceed， then the exchanges is likely win-win and creates a bigger pie。 （d） where unbridled capitalism is present， the gap between rich and poor will widen。 The rich will use their capital to serve their ideologies and promote their own interests。（e） the greatest threat to human freedom is the concentration of power。 Lets not fool ourselves that it is safe to grant too much power to others for 'good' purposes or intentions。 。。。more
Deon Louw
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Must revisit。
Donatas Ditkus
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A negative income tax。A voucher plan for schooling。
Shankar P S
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This book is essential reading to understand American liberty - both political and economic。 The authors have summed up their life's work in this simple book。 It is amazing in clarity and simplicity， with little jargon。 Even in 1979， at the peak of the cold war， the authors have correctly pointed out that lack of economic freedom in Soviet union， India and other left leaning states will not sustain。 They were prescient in explaining how systems where people have freedom to choose will adapt and This book is essential reading to understand American liberty - both political and economic。 The authors have summed up their life's work in this simple book。 It is amazing in clarity and simplicity， with little jargon。 Even in 1979， at the peak of the cold war， the authors have correctly pointed out that lack of economic freedom in Soviet union， India and other left leaning states will not sustain。 They were prescient in explaining how systems where people have freedom to choose will adapt and grow。 They are 100% right。 。。。more
Marco Van
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Well written although I personally disagree with Mr。 Friemand views。
Camilla
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