Milton Friedman's Unfinished Work

If I recall correctly, what first unsettled me at this deeper level was watching a recording of a televised debate between Friedman and John Kenneth Galbraith on the respective roles of state and market. In those days I admired Galbraith, had read all of his books, and reveled in his every wise pronouncement about the deficiencies of Western capitalism and the unacknowledged virtues of Soviet central planning. I remember excitedly tuning in to this program, avid to see all that superior understanding, human empathy, and magisterial disdain pour down on poor old Friedman's head. Well, Friedman quietly, courteously, and good-humouredly tore Galbraith to shreds—or so it seemed to me. Being a lethal debater—which Friedman certainly was; nobody else came close—does not make you right.

But after this encounter I was more receptive to Friedman's broader economic philosophy. I admit, I still took a while to come around: Even when I read Capitalism and Freedom (Friedman's best book, in my view), it didn't so much change my mind as open it. It took a few more years, and a job in government, to complete my education and convince me that Friedman had been right all along about the main thing—right to argue that, when it comes to advancing social welfare, free markets are capable of very much more, and governments very much less, than is almost universally supposed.

Let me know, and I'll e-mail any one of you this article.