His GENIUS is not in what he says. What he says has been known for centuries. It is in how he says it. The GENIUS of Milton Friedman is in his ability in communicating complex economic theories and making them readily understandable to the masses. Thank you, god bless you, and rest in peace Dr. Friedman!
His prodigy and genius of a student, Dr. Thomas Sowell is just as good when it comes to that. But I'm probably preaching to the choir and you already knew that.
@@jorgeponce5512 BS. Friedman was against the central banking system. So much so, he was one of the few and very first economists that told the truth about the Fed being the primary cause of the great depression. He wanted the USA to go back to the gold standard as well. Educate yourself!
@@JPG.01 HIS OWN words: "The Great Depression was produced by a failure of government, by a failure of monetary policy. It was produced by a failure of the Federal Reserve system to act in accordance with the intentions of those who established it". ruclips.net/video/dgyQsIGLt_w/видео.html
Harvey Dustin he literally has a video series that highlights how govt subsidies, tariffs, and unions are bad for business and has hurt america. U need examples of success from a free market? Smartphones, televisions, non insured medical procedures such as plastic surgery and Lasik, the United States economy vs the world! U need examples of failed government run programs and subsidies? How about the welfare state, govt housing, the DMV, the VA hospitals, federal student loans, Obamacare, railroads, home loans in the early 2000s. Need more examples?
Friedman is more consistent than Sowell tho as it relates to making the case why the little man is better off with free markets and how the current way hurts the little man. Sowell spends too much time denying anyone is hurt cause his negative view of social welfare. Friedman has a negative view of social welfare but spends more time focused on corporate welfare while discussing the topic. He often shows how they are related.
@@E2you The problem with this is the people of one nation can't rule the rest of the world either. Capitalism works precisely because it was set up in nation states in opposition to feudalism and slavery. Now that feudalism and slavery were gone or on the way out then you had the phenomena of Imperialism where the rich capitalist nations seek to dominate the poor and the fought with each other in the world wars for world domination. Friedman's idea to fix the former Soviet Union was to create a giant tag sale. Well it recreated a capitalism much like the West but you see they can't get along with either Russia or China because once again they are fighting over who gets what market.
@@kimobrien. The way I look at it. Capitalism, or the game of free market enterprise is ultimatley driven by greed, and acquisitiveness, and profit motive, and in order to play the game well, you have to be ruthless, unscrupulous, and unrelentingly greedy, (the mafia seems to me, the purest example of capitalism to ever existed) i wont go so far as to ascribe this greed as inherent human nature ans milton seems to suggest, i count myself as one of the exceptions, i am not very greedy, I'm one of the mythical 'angels. milton scoffs at, but it seems millions of people love to play the capitalist game, misguided or not, and as long as it exists, you will keep getting these results. Change the game, get a different results, the problem is can humanity change the game from the tired old classical liberalism, technocracy, oligarchical corporateocracy we have now, to something better, and not something worse. The task of the 21st century.
@@tomio8072 We got to today by literally doing the things he's saying are bad in this video. We haven't been anywhere near actual free markets in over 75 years.
Samuel Jardine neoliberalism is what Milton Friedman advocated for right? Well that’s exactly what Presidents such as Ronald Reagan espoused and what Thatcher here in the UK espoused from Hayek. As there was the great boom in credit spending in the 80s Democrats and Labour here in the UK even adopted this stance as well and neoliberalism was here to stay. Only slowly has it been fucking over enough people for people like Trump to gain power to really show off the desperation of people and the ugliness of the economic system. Change is coming man, well, admittedly, I very much hope so! :)
As a young student of Economics ( in Europe) I did‘nt like him that much. Now I know that he was right on many ( not all but many) social and economic issues.
Eliminate the ability of government to grant special favors and you'll end any incentives lobbyists have to petition the government for special favors.
jeffersonianideal So, eliminate an ability our government never Constitutionally had in the first place...??? It’d be a pretty neat trick if you could convince the overwhelming majority of “The people” who are on the receiving end of those special favors to eliminate the authority of our government to grant them...
@@dmur612 The sheeple have grown accustomed to gorging themselves at the public trough for about 100 years. It will likely require a catastrophic economic collapse before we see government being significantly reduced.
Oh man. 1.) Watch the entire "Free to Choose" series on RUclips 2.) Look up "Milton Friedman Speaks" and watch those lectures("Who Protects the Worker?", "Who Protects the Consumer?", and "The Role of Government" are total gems)
I couldn't like this enough. Seriously. This states the problems America is facing still to this day. Thank you Friendman for telling the truth. People need to hear this.
Free market was a idea to replace merchatilism since rich merchants used their position to rig their deals in a way they can't fail. Free market is for the small guys. As Adam Smith said "nothing worse for a country than to be run by a capel of merchants".
Everywhere capitalism has taken hold it leads not to free markets but controlled markets. Its just propagandistic myth that free market capitalist can be brought back in the face of modern industry.
Thank You Prof Friedman for "Clarifying" WHY Free / Fair Market Capitalism is Good .. but is Tainted by Cronies .. Important that this Discussion be Understood / Shared to DeFuse all this Socialism / Communism Talk
Dano1947 “Crony Capitalism” resembles capitalism about as well as “social justice” resembles justice. Pure capitalism is the VOLUNTARY exchange of value, of any form, between two or more parties. In a purely mathematical sense, the “crony capitalist” act of a corporation influencing government officials with $100K worth of campaign contributions, or “free” or drastically reduced cost of products, services, campaign resources or anything else of value which could be imagined by those government officials, in “voluntary exchange” to enact legislation, grants, subsidies, tax breaks, etc, which “earns” that corporation MILLIONS at the INVOLUNTARY expense of all others, IS COLLUSION, CORRUPTION and THEFT. One thing it certainly is NOT is capitalist...
Yeah they all plan a bunch of beurocracy and regulations to game the system. Not a free market at all! But now the crony capitalist are so big they want to make a more communist like system so we can't compete with them at all. It is sort of a global slavery system they are rolling out now.
@@dmur612Pure capitalism is misery for working people and business people living like kings. There is nothing voluntary in " work or die ". There is nothing voluntary is having to pay a price for basic necessities. What you described is closer to... communism (LOL)
I wish more people like this man walked the earth. We'd be much better off as a country. He called things like they were. I don't know why that's so rare.
The only effective argument that can be had against what he is saying, is that of national sovereignty and defense. Free trade is not so bad as long as it does not endanger the nation. We are a country not an economy. If the national defense be compromised by outsourcing most of our manufacturing overseas, to places like China, then it ought not be done, eonomic benefits be damned. Atleast to the degree that it puts the nation at risk. The same can be said of foreign investment within a nation. It is alright so long as it does not compromise the nation. It can do that by scale and degree of influence. Absent those factors he is 100% correct. I just think that is something important to mention. It vastly changes the calculus in these decisions. The US needs to be mostly self sufficient in economic markets that directly impact national defense. Energy, food production, manufacturing, technology, etc. We subject ourselves to influence and risk from outside forces if we do not.
he forgot about capitalist they forget about free markets if they can get a hold into a monopoly either by law or by full force of their economic strength to stom the competition, this can also be done when 2 or 3 of the biggest companies in any market come to an agreement. Just look at what Chile is has being doing in the last 30 years...
TJ Avagliano could you imagine how much influence a management firm could wield with a funds that large? I say keep your own money and manage it yourself. It keeps you responsible for you
Myself biased towards Austrian economics , i have certain disagreements with Friedman. But nevertheless i would have been even more happier if Hayek had the same communication ability as Friedman had. He was such a voracious communicator☺️☺️☺️
The term “Crony Capitalism” on its face is an oxymoron. This is so because the actions defining the term bears a resemblance to ACTUAL capitalism as much as “social justice” has a resemblance of ACTUAL justice. Capitalism is the act of the FREE, VOLUNTARY exchange of value, of any form, between two or more parties, nothing more, nothing less... The “crony capitalist” act of a corporation influencing government officials with $100K worth of campaign contributions, or “free” or drastically reduced cost of products, services, campaign resources or anything else of value which could be imagined by those government officials, in “voluntary exchange” to enact legislation, grants, subsidies, tax breaks, etc, which “earns” that corporation MILLIONS at the INVOLUNTARY expense of all others, in a purely ethical and mathematical sense IS COLLUSION, BRIBERY, CORRUPTION and THEFT. One thing it certainly is NOT is capitalist...
Harvey Dustin For the most part, I agree. When government grows in authority, it’s trough also grows, which results in more people looking to get their nose into the trough... However, Churches STILL do this... They’re tax exempt group, aren’t they??? Any reason they should be exempt from paying Income taxes if Corporations are expected to???
One person who is way smarter than most of us says tariffs help the us economy and another says it hurts. How does the average person know who is right?
Look at history… almost every developed country (England, USA, Japan, South Korea and Germany) grew rich by using tariffs / protectionism and industrial policy… Milton gets many things right but he has blind spots on this issue
223erikwebb the markets with the most freedom usually have the cleanest environments. Look at pollution in China vs the U.S. as just an example. The reason for this is that in free countries where markets are more free than others, people are able to protest without fear and put the spotlight on big corporations. Especially in today’s more socially conscientious world, polluting would have a negative impact on the company’s image. The ability to speak out is a privilege of the free world and in free markets the consumer has the final say. Of course there are distortions but this has generally been true throughout history.
@@jameskustra8526 good point. With all the spotlight on the u.s. as far as climate/pollution goes we are polluting far less than other countries and some times it's hard to see that.
This is easily and most effectively solved by putting a price on pollution and environmental damage. Currently, it's free which is why companies externalise all environmental cost by not paying for it but have the current generation and future generations pay for it instead (with their health and resources to clean it up again in the future). So in the present and in the past pollution and environmental damage is / was maximised because it's always been free. Watch the free market turn all companies into environmental angels in the shortest amount of time after putting a price on pollution and environmental damage.
Also if you think the free market doesn’t solve poverty then respectfully you need to look at history of command economies Vs free markets. For instance in the the USSR, China, Cuba and so on (which are all command economies) had some of the highest poverty rates in the world. Whereas in the Industrial Revolution for instance (which wasn’t a completely free market and had a lot of cronyism) living standard of living for the average person rose for virtually everyone and by all metrics. For example, infant mortality dropped from 75% to around 30% in 50 years, literacy rates skyrocketed as well as average incomes.
Every single person or group would need to agree to not lobbying for their own interests to change this, but how can you count on that? Human nature is about survival & competition among other things. It is good to hear this explanation though.
Pot Head if the government has any power at all it will cater to lobbyists and if the government doesn’t have power they’ll just make a new government, well as long as there’s are still idiots around
I'd have been a greater admirer of Friedman if he'd also had the courage to speak out against the most insidious enemy of free markets: the idea of "democracy" . . .
Japan and South Korea both developed under heavy government control (Industrial Policy) , or state lead capitalism, not the “invisible hand“. The government actually built steel mills, chemical plants , armaments factories and heavy manufacturing businesses like shipyards and auto plants. These businesses were subsidized, funded, and sheltered by government action, NOT the free market. They were only exposed to foreign competition slowly as they matured. This destroys the free trade/free market, libertarian argument that only the private sector can grow the economy and not the government.
I like Milton, but I've always disagreed with his notion of a Free Market when it comes to foreign competitors that manipulate/distort the market like China. When traveling for business in the South, I watched how whole communities were devastated as China put manufacturers out of business. To their credit, China would target a sector, then with state-run enterprises, would pour billions in to own that sector. And political leaders would do nothing to defend these vital sectors. When a community is ruined in this way, it takes generations for people to recover, if ever.
if japan wasn't protectionistic on their car industry, they would've had a bigger share on the IT and computer business industry. all that brainpower just to produce cars on a tiny island
The Japanese don’t have a world class auto industry because of Adam Smith’s “invisible hand“ but because of the very visible hand of government officials and businessmen who created it with government money. The government did the research, engineering, designing and executing and it blocked foreign cars from the Japanese market until the industry has matured
Mr. Friedman, you can't assume responsibility for all people in Free Market situation. If everyone would be so responsible we wouldn't need the government to correct the situation. Government exist for a reason, private corporation not interested in well being of society, they are interested in making profits. CEOs of corporations are cutting multi million dollar bonuses to themselves while exploiting workers for a minimum wage. I mean of course it's up to the worker, they don't have to take the minimum wage job. However, if you don't have anything to eat today and tomorrow you will be forced to take it. Don't tell me that consumers and workers are the ones that benefit from Capitalism the most. The system has to be managed, verified and double checked that people act accordingly and don't violate basic human rights. Government has to be held accountable just as much as corporations and everyone else for whatever mistake they do and whatever fraud they commit. Unfortunately, in capitalistic system judicial system is for profit as well, therefore it's creates deadlock because only those with money win.
That is exactly what Friedman is trying to tell you. Government is bailing out companies = CEOs are acting like there is not tomorrow In order everyone to be responsible, everyone should pay the penalty of their decisions, CEO or workers. He is only forgetting that the money made from free market are huge and every person has a price
Taking a look at the example of beet sugar, lets say their was no quota on beet sugar, thus any consumer could buy beet sugar for mere cents; practically nothing because corporations would hire third-world workers in third world nations to plant, harvest, and ship the sugar to America for example. While it may be cheap for the consumer, it takes aways all the beet sugar farmers jobs in America that would be required to sell the sugar at a higher price, thus getting out competed by the third world, how is this beneficial to a nations citizens? I am asking this question out of mere interest, I intend to read Free to Choose shortly, maybe to learn more about this inquiry. But it appears free markets might not be the best economic solution.
The pure concentrated evil, moral debasity, sadistic depravity, inhuman cruelty, widespread suffering, intentional economic failure, criminal insanity and the nihilistic ignorance is absolutely boundless in it's expanse as history has consistently shown time and again with free market capitalism. How do you think we ended up with ecocide?
Free market capitalism is kind of like a golden unicorn, you are right... much like the 'pure' socialism utopia myth, you can play ping pong blame the other guys game all day long, but the real issue is human nature and biology are driving all this
So what's his solutions? anarchy and no government?? there will always be dominance heriechachies, money, and power cliques. He's talking about by-products of capitalism, aka lobbying, which is just legalized bribery, just as taxation is legalized extortion, i don't like it, more than anybody else, but it is what it is...
Global trade skews the American wages and pricing by third world countries who do not have the taxes nor regulations like the USA. This is one area I disagree with the brilliant Mr. Friedman.
Free is a mythical word that doesn't exist in reality. Even "free will" is restricted to choices. Likewise, free market is euphemism for deregulation or unrestricted business practices. Major corporations have a single priority that tends to override moral principles at times, and that is increasing profit. Those gains are then not shared equally but to make management more wealthy. Other surplus goes to influencing politics to secure more deregulation in a feedback loop that gives more power to the elite over the masses. The capitalistic system is not just corrupt, it's flawed and ineffective. If complete overhaul is inconvenient, then it needs to be replaced!
"Business people are not friends of free markets." Dude you spent your life advocating against workers rights. Your life's work is being a political prop for politicians to stack the deck against the average worker. Truly a great stooge of history, if not a villain.
Thank God the Founding Fathers rejected Adam smith’s free trade ideology and embraced protectionism and industrial policy. South Korea, Japan, Germany and England all developed using tariffs/protectionism. Friedman was right about many things but completely wrong on free trade.
I got a lot of admiration for Professor Friedman. But here's a conundrum.. 30 years ago almost the entire manufacturing base relocated to China inline with Friedmanomics, all while a tidal wave of cheap wage migrants were imported into the West, reducing prices for the domestic Western consumer. Result: millions upon million of highly skilled factory workers and techies are now unemployed heroin addicts. Western civilization is in economic and social free fall. The once working class have been pulverized, despair, suicide are pandemic. Nationalism and whats good for the collective nation trumps Friedmanomics.
So you believe in collectivism. You might try reading a book by Friedman, it'll help you understand basic economics. The individual trumps the collective.
@@xit1254 China and Israel are great examples of Ethno National Collectivism beating the crap out of individualism in Western Democracies. Milton Friedman also coached the aforesaid ethno national states on how to hybrid free market capitalism as long as it fits the collective vision. Your notion of collectivism is as outdated as the Soviet Union.
No, your pharmaceutical companies with the help of the corrupt FDA turned them into heroin addicts. Western civilisation is in economic and social free fall because of leftist policies and corrupt governments. Statism (e.g. inflation since the state controls the money supply) and corruption has destroyed every nation in all of history while free market capitalism has never existed.
@Cis White Male With Extra Privilege perhaps we should have more children, diversify and change our curriculum in addition to fill the new labor demands which were created due to us being so capital rich and successful, instead of whining and bitching like you do.
The problem is greed, pure & simple. Businessmen who value profit over people & progress have taken over the government & legislate for their own benefit, to the detriment of their own environment.
@@Ashigeru47 Really, why are you such a cultist!! A faulty economist who approaches his study with gross suppositions and predetermined and rigid dogma. He does not belong in the category of modern economist. The 10th century is more fitting for his ilk.
@@wokeeye6441 Cultsie, like the Socialist Krugman, who is proven wrong time and time again by other economists?... Most economists agree with Friedman, but don't let the opinions of professionals sway your opinion. Btw- name calling only proves you don't have a valid argument, and you are the one who began with that.
@@Ashigeru47 My argument: there is no evidence that people solely driven by greed and self interest will magically result in the common good. There is no invisible hand; any expectation of any other result than depression and recession after deregulating markets is pure wishful thinking. The fact that since 1970 when they first adopted his policies there has been little investment, and a massive distribution of wealth to the top where it stagnates to this day. All his fault. His policies are as destructive as nazism and he is responsible for the death of millions.
The use of the expression "crony capitalism" is a gross misnomer. The two words are incompatible. Cronyism is the opposite of capitalism. There is NO SUCH THING as crony-capitalism. There is cronyism.... and there is capitalism. Two totally different, opposite things.
M.Friedman reaches the same conclusion that the rich and the poor in every democracy conspire and ally against the middle class but he puts it in non-political terms. It's not that the middle classes have no political clout, neither the poor have. It's that the poor are majority and vote for the political clout of the rich people, who eventually have the same interests as the poor.
That is incorrect, its just the opposite, its the middle class that conspire against the poor and the rich hence why social programmes and subsidies disproportionately benefit the middle class at the expense of the very poor and the very rich As Dr friedman has highlighted many times in many books and talks. Ask yourself this , what is a more effective political coalition , one including all the educated workers, journalists , teachers i.e the middle income group or one with the very poor who are that way because of their lack of politicao abd economic clout ? Go watch more of his material, there are hundres of hours of it on youtube
@@21stcenturycotyk The middle class is a minority. How can the poor vote for social programs that benefit the middle class? What are those programs? Foodstamps? Education? The middle class can afford private education, it's the poor and the rich that are afraid of it. The same with health and the monopolization of defence.
@@nachtundnebel3175 Actually again in fact the middle class is the majority...... most people a neither poor nor super rich at least in the US any way and again. lets logic this out and follow the paper trail . whom benefits from the most from these misguided programs, entitlements benefits subsidies etc.... and who has the skill and positions to push and lobby for them ? those in the middle classes . A classic example friedman himself gives of this is college state scholarship programs . ask your self this , Who are the majority of colleges goers ? those who are or who will soon be in the middle class. Now who pays for them ? tax payers! and who pays taxes for longer ? the poorer folks start working eariler and live less as long. hence the poor are working to subsidies the middle class. And this goes on and on and on.....
@@21stcenturycotyk The middle class pays more taxes than the poor because the poor don't work, they may work more years, but they work less, they are unskilled and lazy. Education scholarships are in favor of the poor. If the middle class could control the scholarships there would have been scholarships for White Christian Men. Have you seen any such bias from the part of the colleges? No, instead they favor hispanics, lesbians, blacks, etc. This is not the middle class. The lobbying part is not a middle class thing, it's always a rich class thing. Only rich people can lobby. Have you seen a black lobby pushing affirmative action? No, then who pushes for it? White Christian Men of the middle class? No, it's the rich people who know they can be the pimps of affirmative action redistribution. The middle class is shrinking because it's the only class that actually pays taxes. Rich people evade them, poor people don't have anything to give. Rich and poor take money from the middle, they don't work, they are burden to society in democracy.
@@nachtundnebel3175 hence why the poor are a bad political coalition , because of all the things you mentioned they lack the political clout and know how and who are all the activist that introduced and pushed for these things ? And why do these things get passed ? just like the good doctor mentions, disperssed cost and concentrated benefits and the poor are just "useful idiots" that go along with it cause they dont know any better because of the very reasons you highlighted . This is inpart why these programs dont fulfil thier objectives becaue those who they are proported to benefit dont get the benefit , the other reason is that by nature government is terribly inefficient but thats a different conversion.
You need goverment involvement, markets are prone to mass missallocation, uncertainty, and monopoly not to mention they're incredibly shit at dealing with risk. Meanwhile, governments have fueled innovation for decades, see Matzucatos "the entrepreneurial state," for more.
@@Ashigeru47 I'm afraid economists of all stripes, including most monetarists, agree monopoly can be created by natural barriers to entry. Anywhere where a distribution network is needed, where a market is too small for competition, where consumer demand is too inelastic, where the MES is too high, monopoly power arises and consumer surplus can be eroded.
@@kingofbadgers3019 Where does this exist? Please provide an example for me. Utility companies and energy companies? Who receive protections via PURPA and PUHCA? Government believes it can allocate resources the right way, but it just ends up producing things people don't want. Do you stand by your arguments for an infant industry with respect to fossil fuels, who receive $14 billion per year, or Walmart, which receives billions in subsidies annually? The mirage of government assistance is a double-edged sword that more often fails than helps.
His GENIUS is not in what he says. What he says has been known for centuries. It is in how he says it. The GENIUS of Milton Friedman is in his ability in communicating complex economic theories and making them readily understandable to the masses. Thank you, god bless you, and rest in peace Dr. Friedman!
His prodigy and genius of a student, Dr. Thomas Sowell is just as good when it comes to that.
But I'm probably preaching to the choir and you already knew that.
Molten Fraudman always stood for Central Banks backstopping TBTF bankers. Such a … GENIUS !!!
@@jorgeponce5512 He was one of the harshest critics of the central banking system of america that I know of, do you have any sources for your claim?
@@jorgeponce5512 BS. Friedman was against the central banking system. So much so, he was one of the few and very first economists that told the truth about the Fed being the primary cause of the great depression. He wanted the USA to go back to the gold standard as well. Educate yourself!
@@JPG.01 HIS OWN words: "The Great Depression was produced by a failure of government, by a failure of monetary policy. It was produced by a failure of the Federal Reserve system to act in accordance with the intentions of those who established it".
ruclips.net/video/dgyQsIGLt_w/видео.html
He called out all of today’s BS back in 1991. His teachings should be mandatory in all public high schools in this country.
Let us indoctrinate people in free market fundementalism!!! Because its always right when the right does it!!!
His teachings are exactly what public schooling doesn’t want to be taught... they want us to be dumbed down leftist politically correct sjw’s.
Harvey Dustin the video is literally about him not being in favor of crony capitalism.
@@wakawaka1976 Of course because everything that does not conform to your narrow ideology is sjw nonsense
Harvey Dustin he literally has a video series that highlights how govt subsidies, tariffs, and unions are bad for business and has hurt america. U need examples of success from a free market? Smartphones, televisions, non insured medical procedures such as plastic surgery and Lasik, the United States economy vs the world! U need examples of failed government run programs and subsidies? How about the welfare state, govt housing, the DMV, the VA hospitals, federal student loans, Obamacare, railroads, home loans in the early 2000s. Need more examples?
Oh how I miss him. Professor Friedman and Professor Sowell should be taught across schools worldwide. What a gentleman, master Yoda of economics.
A lot of his theories are still taught but more at a fundamental level. Friedman just explains it so eloquently that even an idiot can understand it.
Friedman is more consistent than Sowell tho as it relates to making the case why the little man is better off with free markets and how the current way hurts the little man. Sowell spends too much time denying anyone is hurt cause his negative view of social welfare. Friedman has a negative view of social welfare but spends more time focused on corporate welfare while discussing the topic. He often shows how they are related.
@@E2you ironic really, how communist and socialists claim they are for the many, clearly they are not
@@E2you The problem with this is the people of one nation can't rule the rest of the world either. Capitalism works precisely because it was set up in nation states in opposition to feudalism and slavery. Now that feudalism and slavery were gone or on the way out then you had the phenomena of Imperialism where the rich capitalist nations seek to dominate the poor and the fought with each other in the world wars for world domination. Friedman's idea to fix the former Soviet Union was to create a giant tag sale. Well it recreated a capitalism much like the West but you see they can't get along with either Russia or China because once again they are fighting over who gets what market.
@@kimobrien. The way I look at it. Capitalism, or the game of free market enterprise is ultimatley driven by greed, and acquisitiveness, and profit motive, and in order to play the game well, you have to be ruthless, unscrupulous, and unrelentingly greedy, (the mafia seems to me, the purest example of capitalism to ever existed) i wont go so far as to ascribe this greed as inherent human nature ans milton seems to suggest, i count myself as one of the exceptions, i am not very greedy, I'm one of the mythical 'angels. milton scoffs at, but it seems millions of people love to play the capitalist game, misguided or not, and as long as it exists, you will keep getting these results. Change the game, get a different results, the problem is can humanity change the game from the tired old classical liberalism, technocracy, oligarchical corporateocracy we have now, to something better, and not something worse. The task of the 21st century.
When he discern between business and academics. That make me fall in love with his works.
If only America would listen to this man and implement his ideas we could/would solve all our nations problems with money to spare.
Roy Madison they mostly did, and it’s lead to today
This was America .. Progressives moved in!!
tom io blatant dishonesty on your part. You couldn’t be further from the truth.
@@tomio8072 We got to today by literally doing the things he's saying are bad in this video. We haven't been anywhere near actual free markets in over 75 years.
Samuel Jardine neoliberalism is what Milton Friedman advocated for right? Well that’s exactly what Presidents such as Ronald Reagan espoused and what Thatcher here in the UK espoused from Hayek. As there was the great boom in credit spending in the 80s Democrats and Labour here in the UK even adopted this stance as well and neoliberalism was here to stay. Only slowly has it been fucking over enough people for people like Trump to gain power to really show off the desperation of people and the ugliness of the economic system. Change is coming man, well, admittedly, I very much hope so! :)
As a young student of Economics ( in Europe) I did‘nt like him that much. Now I know that he was right on many ( not all but many) social and economic issues.
The greatest speaker for economics of all time :) I'm not a Chicago school of economics entirely, but I love Milton :)
Eliminate the ability of government to grant special favors and you'll end any incentives lobbyists have to petition the government for special favors.
Funnily enough the solution to most issues is not to do something smart, but to stop doing stupid things.
@@brianviktor8212
Or, in the case of government, just stop doing.
@M Tooth
That can only occur if government is reduced to strict minimums.
jeffersonianideal
So, eliminate an ability our government never Constitutionally had in the first place...???
It’d be a pretty neat trick if you could convince the overwhelming majority of “The people” who are on the receiving end of those special favors to eliminate the authority of our government to grant them...
@@dmur612
The sheeple have grown accustomed to gorging themselves at the public trough for about 100 years. It will likely require a catastrophic economic collapse before we see government being significantly reduced.
Friedman was a genious at explanations, as well as Economics. Missing him.....
The concentrated visible vs the dispersed invisible is an absolutely amazing concept. Holds true to pc culture as well
Milton and hippies, yeah, nah, don't think so. Reachin
Cronyism is not Capitalism. Cronyism is Statism. Statism is a form of Socialism.
YES! I correct everyone that makes this statement. It is not crony capitalism. It is crony socialism.
G Edward Griffin
@@blueeyedbull67 I've been saying the same thing for over a decade.
Fascism is like the weird brother of socialism.
socialism for the elite
First time hearing from him and I'm sold after just 15 sec. He just nailed it right there from the start.
Look into him more, he's fantastic
Oh man.
1.) Watch the entire "Free to Choose" series on RUclips
2.) Look up "Milton Friedman Speaks" and watch those lectures("Who Protects the Worker?", "Who Protects the Consumer?", and "The Role of Government" are total gems)
Oldschool conservatives called him a leftie and modern liberals call him alt right, let that sink in
@@bly998 the intellectual who's hated by both sides I'd wager is the one who speaks the truth.
@@jackandrews7821 hahahha, the underdog
yes to free market.
no to crony capitalism.
no to war.
In the ehd the only freedom that capitalism defends is the shout of freedom to buy and sell.
Dam I really wish more people listened to Milton Friedman
Trump should - his 'tariffs are my favourite word' is clearly a complete denial of free market economics.
Great man and timeless ideas
Rules, of course rules and laws for you people not me.
Thank you LibertyPen! Still uploading Friedman videos is awesome.
I couldn't like this enough. Seriously. This states the problems America is facing still to this day. Thank you Friendman for telling the truth. People need to hear this.
Free market was a idea to replace merchatilism since rich merchants used their position to rig their deals in a way they can't fail. Free market is for the small guys. As Adam Smith said "nothing worse for a country than to be run by a capel of merchants".
Everywhere capitalism has taken hold it leads not to free markets but controlled markets. Its just propagandistic myth that free market capitalist can be brought back in the face of modern industry.
I've seen this part in other videos, but every time I rewatch it I pick up on some themes I didn't catch the last time.
The last minute of this needs to be played on repeat on every TV station for a year.
Thank You Prof Friedman for "Clarifying" WHY Free / Fair Market Capitalism is Good .. but is Tainted by Cronies ..
Important that this Discussion be Understood / Shared to DeFuse all this Socialism / Communism Talk
Crony capitalism is when corporations lobby congress for favors in return for favors. Both get very rich and we get nothing.
Wrong, we got the bills
Dano1947
“Crony Capitalism” resembles capitalism about as well as “social justice” resembles justice.
Pure capitalism is the VOLUNTARY exchange of value, of any form, between two or more parties.
In a purely mathematical sense, the “crony capitalist” act of a corporation influencing government officials with $100K worth of campaign contributions, or “free” or drastically reduced cost of products, services, campaign resources or anything else of value which could be imagined by those government officials, in “voluntary exchange” to enact legislation, grants, subsidies, tax breaks, etc, which “earns” that corporation MILLIONS at the INVOLUNTARY expense of all others, IS COLLUSION, CORRUPTION and THEFT.
One thing it certainly is NOT is capitalist...
Yeah they all plan a bunch of beurocracy and regulations to game the system. Not a free market at all! But now the crony capitalist are so big they want to make a more communist like system so we can't compete with them at all. It is sort of a global slavery system they are rolling out now.
@@halasimov1362 bingo
@@dmur612Pure capitalism is misery for working people and business people living like kings.
There is nothing voluntary in " work or die ".
There is nothing voluntary is having to pay a price for basic necessities.
What you described is closer to... communism (LOL)
Aradia Strengaria: It's also been said, that success is the best revenge.
Slam Dunk! Pure wisdom!
Is anyone listening to what he said about tariffs?
Still ahead of the curve as always...
I wish more people like this man walked the earth. We'd be much better off as a country. He called things like they were. I don't know why that's so rare.
The only effective argument that can be had against what he is saying, is that of national sovereignty and defense. Free trade is not so bad as long as it does not endanger the nation. We are a country not an economy. If the national defense be compromised by outsourcing most of our manufacturing overseas, to places like China, then it ought not be done, eonomic benefits be damned. Atleast to the degree that it puts the nation at risk. The same can be said of foreign investment within a nation. It is alright so long as it does not compromise the nation. It can do that by scale and degree of influence.
Absent those factors he is 100% correct. I just think that is something important to mention. It vastly changes the calculus in these decisions. The US needs to be mostly self sufficient in economic markets that directly impact national defense. Energy, food production, manufacturing, technology, etc. We subject ourselves to influence and risk from outside forces if we do not.
I'm on board so long as he admits that we have to guard against monopolies in a free market.
When even socialists recognise there is no free market now....
he forgot about capitalist they forget about free markets if they can get a hold into a monopoly either by law or by full force of their economic strength to stom the competition, this can also be done when 2 or 3 of the biggest companies in any market come to an agreement. Just look at what Chile is has being doing in the last 30 years...
“Social” security says it all
That is just a number on a card used for your driver's license at this point...
Social security would be excellent if it was optional and made private.
TJ Avagliano could you imagine how much influence a management firm could wield with a funds that large? I say keep your own money and manage it yourself. It keeps you responsible for you
Myself biased towards Austrian economics , i have certain disagreements with Friedman. But nevertheless i would have been even more happier if Hayek had the same communication ability as Friedman had. He was such a voracious communicator☺️☺️☺️
The term “Crony Capitalism” on its face is an oxymoron.
This is so because the actions defining the term bears a resemblance to ACTUAL capitalism as much as “social justice” has a resemblance of ACTUAL justice.
Capitalism is the act of the FREE, VOLUNTARY exchange of value, of any form, between two or more parties, nothing more, nothing less...
The “crony capitalist” act of a corporation influencing government officials with $100K worth of campaign contributions, or “free” or drastically reduced cost of products, services, campaign resources or anything else of value which could be imagined by those government officials, in “voluntary exchange” to enact legislation, grants, subsidies, tax breaks, etc, which “earns” that corporation MILLIONS at the INVOLUNTARY expense of all others, in a purely ethical and mathematical sense IS COLLUSION, BRIBERY, CORRUPTION and THEFT.
One thing it certainly is NOT is capitalist...
Harvey Dustin
For the most part, I agree. When government grows in authority, it’s trough also grows, which results in more people looking to get their nose into the trough...
However, Churches STILL do this...
They’re tax exempt group, aren’t they???
Any reason they should be exempt from paying Income taxes if Corporations are expected to???
One person who is way smarter than most of us says tariffs help the us economy and another says it hurts. How does the average person know who is right?
Look at history… almost every developed country (England, USA, Japan, South Korea and Germany) grew rich by using tariffs / protectionism and industrial policy… Milton gets many things right but he has blind spots on this issue
I love this but I'm in a constant battle about environmental responsibility and have a free market. Anybody have thought on that?
223erikwebb the markets with the most freedom usually have the cleanest environments. Look at pollution in China vs the U.S. as just an example. The reason for this is that in free countries where markets are more free than others, people are able to protest without fear and put the spotlight on big corporations. Especially in today’s more socially conscientious world, polluting would have a negative impact on the company’s image. The ability to speak out is a privilege of the free world and in free markets the consumer has the final say. Of course there are distortions but this has generally been true throughout history.
@@jameskustra8526 good point. With all the spotlight on the u.s. as far as climate/pollution goes we are polluting far less than other countries and some times it's hard to see that.
This is easily and most effectively solved by putting a price on pollution and environmental damage. Currently, it's free which is why companies externalise all environmental cost by not paying for it but have the current generation and future generations pay for it instead (with their health and resources to clean it up again in the future). So in the present and in the past pollution and environmental damage is / was maximised because it's always been free. Watch the free market turn all companies into environmental angels in the shortest amount of time after putting a price on pollution and environmental damage.
That's the description of Brazil. "Simple" like that.
Where are men like this today ? Peter schiff perhaps ????
Also if you think the free market doesn’t solve poverty then respectfully you need to look at history of command economies Vs free markets. For instance in the the USSR, China, Cuba and so on (which are all command economies) had some of the highest poverty rates in the world. Whereas in the Industrial Revolution for instance (which wasn’t a completely free market and had a lot of cronyism) living standard of living for the average person rose for virtually everyone and by all metrics. For example, infant mortality dropped from 75% to around 30% in 50 years, literacy rates skyrocketed as well as average incomes.
I think this goes for the scientific method also.
This guy's a monster.
Every single person or group would need to agree to not lobbying for their own interests to change this, but how can you count on that? Human nature is about survival & competition among other things. It is good to hear this explanation though.
If the government didn't have the ability to cater to the lobbyists they wouldn't be a problem
Pot Head if the government has any power at all it will cater to lobbyists and if the government doesn’t have power they’ll just make a new government, well as long as there’s are still idiots around
Human nature created this mess
His last point was profoundly true.
YUP...the academics LOVE their FREEDOM but NOT for other people
I'd have been a greater admirer of Friedman if he'd also had the courage to speak out against the most insidious enemy of free markets: the idea of "democracy" . . .
It's the same argument as communist saying soviet union wasn't communist but state capitalist
I guess that I am just an normal, average worker. Even so, I've owned a business for 30 years.
the seen and the unseen is form F. Bastiat
Brilliant!
smart man
what a mind!
Japan and South Korea
both developed under heavy government control (Industrial Policy) , or state lead capitalism, not the “invisible hand“.
The government actually built steel mills, chemical plants , armaments factories and heavy manufacturing businesses like shipyards and auto plants. These businesses were subsidized, funded, and sheltered by government action, NOT the free market. They were only exposed to foreign competition slowly as they matured. This destroys the free trade/free market, libertarian argument that only the private sector can grow the economy and not the government.
Crony capitalism is incorrect. It is really crony statism, or crony socialism.
I love him
Post office. Make it a choice
@cmiller8492 we should be able to itemize where our money goes
john Doe: isn't that what I just said in so many words?
I like Milton, but I've always disagreed with his notion of a Free Market when it comes to foreign competitors that manipulate/distort the market like China. When traveling for business in the South, I watched how whole communities were devastated as China put manufacturers out of business. To their credit, China would target a sector, then with state-run enterprises, would pour billions in to own that sector. And political leaders would do nothing to defend these vital sectors. When a community is ruined in this way, it takes generations for people to recover, if ever.
China is almost fascist.
The robber barons did exist this thing was building up way back then
if japan wasn't protectionistic on their car industry, they would've had a bigger share on the IT and computer business industry. all that brainpower just to produce cars on a tiny island
The Japanese don’t have a world class auto industry because of Adam Smith’s “invisible hand“ but because of the very visible hand of government officials and businessmen who created it with government money. The government did the research, engineering, designing and executing and it blocked foreign cars from the Japanese market until the industry has matured
Mr. Friedman, you can't assume responsibility for all people in Free Market situation. If everyone would be so responsible we wouldn't need the government to correct the situation. Government exist for a reason, private corporation not interested in well being of society, they are interested in making profits. CEOs of corporations are cutting multi million dollar bonuses to themselves while exploiting workers for a minimum wage. I mean of course it's up to the worker, they don't have to take the minimum wage job. However, if you don't have anything to eat today and tomorrow you will be forced to take it. Don't tell me that consumers and workers are the ones that benefit from Capitalism the most.
The system has to be managed, verified and double checked that people act accordingly and don't violate basic human rights.
Government has to be held accountable just as much as corporations and everyone else for whatever mistake they do and whatever fraud they commit. Unfortunately, in capitalistic system judicial system is for profit as well, therefore it's creates deadlock because only those with money win.
That is exactly what Friedman is trying to tell you.
Government is bailing out companies = CEOs are acting like there is not tomorrow
In order everyone to be responsible, everyone should pay the penalty of their decisions, CEO or workers.
He is only forgetting that the money made from free market are huge and every person has a price
Listen to this guy a long long time, indeed one every child can understand if their mind is like a parachute
Taking a look at the example of beet sugar, lets say their was no quota on beet sugar, thus any consumer could buy beet sugar for mere cents; practically nothing because corporations would hire third-world workers in third world nations to plant, harvest, and ship the sugar to America for example. While it may be cheap for the consumer, it takes aways all the beet sugar farmers jobs in America that would be required to sell the sugar at a higher price, thus getting out competed by the third world, how is this beneficial to a nations citizens? I am asking this question out of mere interest, I intend to read Free to Choose shortly, maybe to learn more about this inquiry. But it appears free markets might not be the best economic solution.
Didn't he mean Bastiat instead of Marshall?
The pure concentrated evil, moral debasity, sadistic depravity, inhuman cruelty, widespread suffering, intentional economic failure, criminal insanity and the nihilistic ignorance is absolutely boundless in it's expanse as history has consistently shown time and again with free market capitalism. How do you think we ended up with ecocide?
I think you misspelled socialism. Btw, free market capitalism has never existed, so it's interesting how you base your argument on history.
Free market capitalism is kind of like a golden unicorn, you are right... much like the 'pure' socialism utopia myth, you can play ping pong blame the other guys game all day long, but the real issue is human nature and biology are driving all this
Genius!
So what's his solutions? anarchy and no government?? there will always be dominance heriechachies, money, and power cliques. He's talking about by-products of capitalism, aka lobbying, which is just legalized bribery, just as taxation is legalized extortion, i don't like it, more than anybody else, but it is what it is...
thanks
Alfred Marshall ? Come on Milton, it was Frederic Bastiat who first came up with that
00:30 HOLD UP
Guru
Global trade skews the American wages and pricing by third world countries who do not have the taxes nor regulations like the USA. This is one area I disagree with the brilliant Mr. Friedman.
yang brought me here
Free is a mythical word that doesn't exist in reality. Even "free will" is restricted to choices. Likewise, free market is euphemism for deregulation or unrestricted business practices. Major corporations have a single priority that tends to override moral principles at times, and that is increasing profit. Those gains are then not shared equally but to make management more wealthy. Other surplus goes to influencing politics to secure more deregulation in a feedback loop that gives more power to the elite over the masses. The capitalistic system is not just corrupt, it's flawed and ineffective. If complete overhaul is inconvenient, then it needs to be replaced!
The invisible majority?
"Business people are not friends of free markets." Dude you spent your life advocating against workers rights. Your life's work is being a political prop for politicians to stack the deck against the average worker. Truly a great stooge of history, if not a villain.
Wow, Friedman really built his arguments on a load of dogma didn't he 😅
The full two hour interview : ruclips.net/video/ujxLJx223-Y/видео.html
Bingo.
Thank God the Founding Fathers rejected Adam smith’s
free trade ideology and embraced protectionism and industrial policy. South Korea, Japan, Germany and England all developed using tariffs/protectionism.
Friedman was right about many things but completely wrong on free trade.
wow
7:04 ATF and FBI
I got a lot of admiration for Professor Friedman. But here's a conundrum.. 30 years ago almost the entire manufacturing base relocated to China inline with Friedmanomics, all while a tidal wave of cheap wage migrants were imported into the West, reducing prices for the domestic Western consumer. Result: millions upon million of highly skilled factory workers and techies are now unemployed heroin addicts. Western civilization is in economic and social free fall. The once working class have been pulverized, despair, suicide are pandemic. Nationalism and whats good for the collective nation trumps Friedmanomics.
So you believe in collectivism. You might try reading a book by Friedman, it'll help you understand basic economics. The individual trumps the collective.
@@xit1254 China and Israel are great examples of Ethno National Collectivism beating the crap out of individualism in Western Democracies. Milton Friedman also coached the aforesaid ethno national states on how to hybrid free market capitalism as long as it fits the collective vision. Your notion of collectivism is as outdated as the Soviet Union.
No, your pharmaceutical companies with the help of the corrupt FDA turned them into heroin addicts. Western civilisation is in economic and social free fall because of leftist policies and corrupt governments. Statism (e.g. inflation since the state controls the money supply) and corruption has destroyed every nation in all of history while free market capitalism has never existed.
Ancap Perspective: You will lyao till you develope type 2 diabetes.
"Crony Capitalism" is an oxymoron
And??
@@DublinDapper I think they're suggesting that's why it doesn't work.
@@ghostaccountlmao Why Capitalism doesn't work?
@Cis White Male With Extra Privilege perhaps we should have more children, diversify and change our curriculum in addition to fill the new labor demands which were created due to us being so capital rich and successful, instead of whining and bitching like you do.
Free market should be a fair game, but players want to bribe the referee... human nature.
Space monkey: Wrong, they can print the bills and they can pass the bills.
The problem is greed, pure & simple. Businessmen who value profit over people & progress have taken over the government & legislate for their own benefit, to the detriment of their own environment.
it looks to me that industrial capitalism was specifically designed to harness greed, pure and simple.
I believe the academics do know better than the ignorant people are. Educated people rule the ignorant.
Academics make the mistake of trying to being authorities outside of their perspective fields or even application of their fields to other sectors.
@@randallsanchez3161 Not necessarily. Being an academic teaches you to look at issues from different perspectives.
How did you get actual footage of Beelzebub? The prince of darkness is looking rather old.
Milton Friedman...The Light Bringer...
There IS some truth in that...
@@Ashigeru47 Really, why are you such a cultist!! A faulty economist who approaches his study with gross suppositions and predetermined and rigid dogma. He does not belong in the category of modern economist. The 10th century is more fitting for his ilk.
@@Ashigeru47 You can't even defend the flagrant wrongs that this ideology committed to humanity. He is a like Rosenburg, a thug scholar
@@wokeeye6441 Cultsie, like the Socialist Krugman, who is proven wrong time and time again by other economists?...
Most economists agree with Friedman, but don't let the opinions of professionals sway your opinion.
Btw- name calling only proves you don't have a valid argument, and you are the one who began with that.
@@Ashigeru47 My argument: there is no evidence that people solely driven by greed and self interest will magically result in the common good. There is no invisible hand; any expectation of any other result than depression and recession after deregulating markets is pure wishful thinking. The fact that since 1970 when they first adopted his policies there has been little investment, and a massive distribution of wealth to the top where it stagnates to this day. All his fault. His policies are as destructive as nazism and he is responsible for the death of millions.
That's because free market is just a propaganda term. Business wants a monopoly for bigger profits.
The use of the expression "crony capitalism" is a gross misnomer. The two words are incompatible. Cronyism is the opposite of capitalism. There is NO SUCH THING as crony-capitalism. There is cronyism.... and there is capitalism. Two totally different, opposite things.
Abolish financial slavery. E.T.F.
M.Friedman reaches the same conclusion that the rich and the poor in every democracy conspire and ally against the middle class but he puts it in non-political terms. It's not that the middle classes have no political clout, neither the poor have. It's that the poor are majority and vote for the political clout of the rich people, who eventually have the same interests as the poor.
That is incorrect, its just the opposite, its the middle class that conspire against the poor and the rich hence why social programmes and subsidies disproportionately benefit the middle class at the expense of the very poor and the very rich As Dr friedman has highlighted many times in many books and talks. Ask yourself this , what is a more effective political coalition , one including all the educated workers, journalists , teachers i.e the middle income group or one with the very poor who are that way because of their lack of politicao abd economic clout ?
Go watch more of his material, there are hundres of hours of it on youtube
@@21stcenturycotyk The middle class is a minority. How can the poor vote for social programs that benefit the middle class? What are those programs? Foodstamps? Education? The middle class can afford private education, it's the poor and the rich that are afraid of it. The same with health and the monopolization of defence.
@@nachtundnebel3175 Actually again in fact the middle class is the majority...... most people a neither poor nor super rich at least in the US any way and again. lets logic this out and follow the paper trail . whom benefits from the most from these misguided programs, entitlements benefits subsidies etc.... and who has the skill and positions to push and lobby for them ? those in the middle classes . A classic example friedman himself gives of this is college state scholarship programs . ask your self this , Who are the majority of colleges goers ? those who are or who will soon be in the middle class. Now who pays for them ? tax payers! and who pays taxes for longer ? the poorer folks start working eariler and live less as long. hence the poor are working to subsidies the middle class. And this goes on and on and on.....
@@21stcenturycotyk The middle class pays more taxes than the poor because the poor don't work, they may work more years, but they work less, they are unskilled and lazy. Education scholarships are in favor of the poor. If the middle class could control the scholarships there would have been scholarships for White Christian Men. Have you seen any such bias from the part of the colleges? No, instead they favor hispanics, lesbians, blacks, etc. This is not the middle class. The lobbying part is not a middle class thing, it's always a rich class thing. Only rich people can lobby. Have you seen a black lobby pushing affirmative action? No, then who pushes for it? White Christian Men of the middle class? No, it's the rich people who know they can be the pimps of affirmative action redistribution. The middle class is shrinking because it's the only class that actually pays taxes. Rich people evade them, poor people don't have anything to give. Rich and poor take money from the middle, they don't work, they are burden to society in democracy.
@@nachtundnebel3175 hence why the poor are a bad political coalition , because of all the things you mentioned they lack the political clout and know how and who are all the activist that introduced and pushed for these things ? And why do these things get passed ? just like the good doctor mentions, disperssed cost and concentrated benefits and the poor are just "useful idiots" that go along with it cause they dont know any better because of the very reasons you highlighted . This is inpart why these programs dont fulfil thier objectives becaue those who they are proported to benefit dont get the benefit , the other reason is that by nature government is terribly inefficient but thats a different conversion.
Larry Philby: So you think only rich people are smart?
Different tune he's playing than back in his younger days, eh? But at least he gets it right, in the end that is...
So far I like this man. I thought he was a shrew... Did I say shrew I meant
Trump left the chat
Noam Chomsky might agree with this line of thinking...
Quite a handsome fellow if I do say so.
My Boy Trump has the right ideas I think he has seen some of these videos
You need goverment involvement, markets are prone to mass missallocation, uncertainty, and monopoly not to mention they're incredibly shit at dealing with risk. Meanwhile, governments have fueled innovation for decades, see Matzucatos "the entrepreneurial state," for more.
Monopolies are only created when governments act in favor of one business over their competition.
Cronyism creates monopolies, not the free market.
@@Ashigeru47 I'm afraid economists of all stripes, including most monetarists, agree monopoly can be created by natural barriers to entry. Anywhere where a distribution network is needed, where a market is too small for competition, where consumer demand is too inelastic, where the MES is too high, monopoly power arises and consumer surplus can be eroded.
@@kingofbadgers3019 Where does this exist? Please provide an example for me. Utility companies and energy companies? Who receive protections via PURPA and PUHCA? Government believes it can allocate resources the right way, but it just ends up producing things people don't want. Do you stand by your arguments for an infant industry with respect to fossil fuels, who receive $14 billion per year, or Walmart, which receives billions in subsidies annually? The mirage of government assistance is a double-edged sword that more often fails than helps.