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Milton Friedman

Milton Friedman Quotes

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Famous Milton Friedman Quotes

“The world runs on individuals pursuing their self interests. The great achievements of civilization have not come from government bureaus. Einstein didn't construct his theory under order from a bureaucrat. Henry Ford didn't revolutionize the automobile industry that way.”

WorldWaySelfGovernmentRunningOrderIndividualInterestTheoryIndustryCivilizationAchievementCapitalismConstructsFree MarketSelf InterestAutomobileBureaucratsGreat AchievementAutomobile Industry
Author:Milton Friedman
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“"Free markets" is a very general term. There are all sorts of problems that will emerge. Free markets work best when the transaction between two individuals affects only those individuals. Most often, a transaction between you and me affects a third party. That is the source of all problems for government. That is the source of all pollution problems, of the inequality problem. This reality ensures that the end of history will never come.”

TwoEndsProblemRealityGovernmentIndividualTermPartySourceThirdsInequalityPollutionFree MarketTransactionsThird PartiesBetween You And Me
Author:Milton Friedman
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“The important issue is not how much inequality there is but how much opportunity there is for individuals to get out of the bottom classes and into the top. If there is enough movement upward, people will accept the efficiency of the markets. If you have opportunity, there is a great tolerance for inequality. That has been the saving grace of the American system.”

PeopleIfsHas BeensImportantEnoughOpportunityIndividualAcceptingClassIssuesGraceMovementBottomToleranceInequalitySavingEfficiencyImportant IssuesSaving Grace
Author:Milton Friedman
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“I believe the role that people like myself have played in the transformation of public opinion has been by persistently presenting a different point of view, a point of view which stresses the importance of private markets, of individual freedom, and the distorting effect of governmental policy.”

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Author:Milton Friedman
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“Why have we had such a decline in moral climate? I submit to you that a major factor has been a change in the philosophy which has been dominant, a change from belief in individual responsibility to belief in social responsibility. If you adopt the view that a man is not responsible for his own behavior, that somehow society is responsible, why should he seek to make his behavior good?”

IfsMenShouldHas BeensPhilosophyIndividualBeliefSocialViewsResponsibilityMoralBehaviorMajorsResponsibleClimateFactorsDeclineSubmitDominantSocial ResponsibilityIndividual Responsibility
Book:Bright Promises, Dismal Performance: An Economist's Protest
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“Government has three primary functions. It should provide for military defense of the nation. It should enforce contracts between individuals. It should protect citizens from crimes against themselves or their property. When government-- in pursuit of good intentions tries to rearrange the economy, legislate morality, or help special interests, the cost come in inefficiency, lack of motivation, and loss of freedom. Government should be a referee, not an active player.”

ShouldTryingHelpingGovernmentMotivationThreeIndividualNationsInterestLossEconomyPlayerSpecialMilitaryCrimeCitizensMoralityCostProtectFunctionPropertyIntentionActiveDefensePursuitPrimariesContractsGood IntentionsSpecial InterestsRefereeInefficiency
Author:Milton Friedman
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“I start ... from a belief in individual freedom and that derives fundamentally from a belief in the limitations of our knowledge, from a belief ... that nobody can be sure that what he believes is right, is really right ... I'm an imperfect human being who cannot be certain of anything, so what position ... involved the least intolerance on my part? ... The most attractive position ... is putting individual freedom first.”

FirstsBelieveHumansCertainIndividualBeliefFreedomHuman BeingsPositionInvolvedLimitationAttractiveImperfectIntoleranceIndividual Freedom
Author:Milton Friedman
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“Fundamentally, there are only two ways of coordinating the economic activities of millions. One is central direction involving the use of coercion - the technique of the army and of the modern totalitarian state. The other is voluntary cooperation of individuals - the technique of the marketplace.”

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Book:Milton Friedman on Freedom: Selections from The Collected Works of Milton Friedman
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“To the free man, the country is the collection of individuals who compose it, not something over and above them. He is proud of a common heritage and loyal to common traditions. But he regards government as a means, an instrumentality, neither a grantor of favors and gifts, nor a master or god to be blindly worshipped and served.”

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Author:Milton Friedman
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“The proper role of government is exactly what John Stuart Mill said in the middle of the 19th century in "On Liberty." The proper role of government is to prevent other people from harming an individual. Government, he said, never has any right to interfere with an individual for that individual's own good.”

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Author:Milton Friedman
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“The free man will ask neither what his country can do for him nor what he can do for his country. He will ask rather 'What can I and my compatriots do through government' to help us discharge our individual responsibilities, to achieve our several goals and purposes, and above all, to protect our freedom?”

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Book:Capitalism and Freedom: Fortieth Anniversary Edition
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“By encouraging men to spy and report on one another, by making it in the private interest of large numbers of citizens to evade the controls, and by making actions illegal that are in the public interest, the controls undermine individual morality.”

MenActionIndividualInterestNumbersCitizensMoralityReportsIllegalSpyLarge NumbersPublic InterestIndividual Morality
Book:An economist's protest: columns in political economy
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“Individual price and wage changes will not be prevented. In the main, price changes will simply be concealed by taking the form of changes in discounts, service, and quality, and wage changes, in overtime, perquisites and so on…. But to whatever extent the freeze is enforced, it will do harm by distorting relative prices.”

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Book:There's no such thing as a free lunch
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