A very effective conveyance of the meaning of free market economics and its value to the consumer. The opening quote is from Justice Louis Brandeis' opinion in Olmstead v. United States: "Experience should teach us to be most on our guard to protect liberty when the government's purposes are beneficial. Men born to freedom are naturally alert to repel invasion of their liberty by evil-minded rulers. The greater dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding."

I like how Friedman shows the numerous restraints and how, individually they seem petty, but in aggregate our quite a net. He mentions that at the time of writing, all cars had to have seat belts but no one was -- yet -- required to wear them. Another idea the Friedman brings out is that socialism has moved from controlling the means of production to controlling the result directly. He also shows how the income tax system is even more regressive than I formerly thought. The social security tax has a cap. Moreover, the poor start working at a younger age, work to an older age, and have a short life expectancy during which to enjoy the same result. No example is more effective to me than that of the railroads and the ICC. The railroads came under regulation because activists saw their monopoly power. Satisfied of the regulation, they moved on to other causes while the railroads put lobbyists and "revolving door" consultants in the regulatory positions. The same cycle appeared with the advent of trucking, leading to solutions like extremely expensive ICC certificates and rate "problems" being solved by raising long-haul to match short-haul rates. ( )

I might be a Republican after reading this,
except for all the passages where I went "yeah, but . . . ." ( )

makes so much sense, a shame he's considered a dangerous radical by Democrat Party ( )

Business & Investing
- Economics

While many of their examples are a bit dated (their criticism of government bonds, for example, is tainted by the economic troubles of the Carter years, and has since been fixed -- basically), the Friedmans have an unfailing understanding of money issues and a charming wit and logic. Entertaining as well as informative, this book really provided the economic foundation for the Reagan Republican. If you want a good overview of Conservative economic theory, this is your book. ( )