The major social problems of the United States—deteriorating education, lawlessness and crime, homelessness, the collapse of family values, the crisis in medical care—have been produced by well=intended actions of government. That is easy to document. The difficult task is understanding why government is the problem. The power of special interests arising from the concentrated benefits of most government actions and their dispersed costs is only part of the answer. A more fundamental part is the difference between the self-interest of individuals when they are engaged in the private sector and the self-interest of the same individuals when they are engaged in the government sector. The result is a government system that is no longer controlled by "we, the people." Instead of Lincoln's government "of the people, by the people, and for the people," we now have a government "of the people, by the bureaucrats, for the bureaucrats," including the elected representatives who have become bureaucrats. At the moment, term limits apear to be the reform that promises to be most effective in curbing Leviathan.
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Milton Friedman is a senior research fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and the Paul Snowden Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Chicago. In 1976 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in economics. He has written a number of books, including two with his wife, Rose D. Friedman---the bestselling Free to Choose and Two Lucky People: Memoirs, the latter published by the University of Chicago Press.
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63 of 68 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
ARGUMENTS AGAINST STRENGHTENING GOVERNMENTS,
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This review is from: Why Government Is the Problem (Essays in Public Policy) (Paperback)
In this very short piece, Friedman tries to make a brief argument on why government is in fact the main obstacle to development. Given the very limited space (18 pages), it is impossible to make a very strong argument on such a broad topic. Friedman makes some good points, but most of them do not provide supporting evidence, so it leaves a hesitant reader unconvinced. It seems to me that this book is sufficient for good argument over cocktail conversation.
For a more thorough analysis of the same arguments presented in this short book, I would recommend either Capital and Freedom or Free to Choose by Friedman as well.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
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More Timely Than Ever,
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This review is from: Why Government Is the Problem (Essays in Public Policy) (Paperback)
What can I say - The Great Milton Friedman was ahead of his time. The Occupy protesters need to read this & go protest on Capital Hill! There's nothing like a free market economy when the Government gets out of the way!!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
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This review is from: Why Government Is the Problem (Essays in Public Policy) (Paperback)
Mr. Friedman provides a compelling discussion of what is wrong with the current state of our government. Probably more relevant today than when it was written. Anyone interested in government and policies needs to read this.
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