A Negative Inspiration

Men found that his absorbing egotism was deadly to all other men. It resembled the torpedo, which inflicts a succession of shocks on any one who takes hold of it, producing spasms which contract the muscles of the hand, so that the man can not open his fingers; and the animal inflicts new and more violent shocks, until he paralyzes and kills his victim. So, this exorbitant egotist narrowed, impoverished... those who served him; and the universal cry of France, and of Europe, in 1814, was, “enough of him;” “assez de Bonaparte.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

The above quote was originally penned to describe Napoleon Bonaparte, the scourge of Europe and emporer of France and most of the continent. The reason for its position at the head of this post is that it happens to capture my personal feelings for a man who passed away this week at the age of 94.

Milton Friedman, noted nobel prize winning economist and also a staunch opponent of government action, is one of the driving motivations behind my ambition towards the academy. I would not consider my life wasted if it merely served to discredit the "Chicago School" which he founded. If you'd like to here him discuss some of his views, I found him on Google Video (via Andrew Potter). My favourite line: "I have often said that the most anti-negro law on the books of this land is the minimum wage..."

There are more than a couple of people in the media posting their views on his life and his contributions to economics and public policy. If you have nothing better to do with your weekend you could wade into a couple. The best place to start is with Richard Adams at the Guardian: His first post and a follow-up.

A few more posts and articles can be found here, here and here.

Defenses of his contribution from the Acton Institute here and the National Review here. Also for those of you interested in the American Ruling Class, the Council on Foreign Relations here.

Milton Friedman is the highest example of what happens when economists get really good at math and not so good at remembering people. The seduction of the lines on a diagram is always in danger of overwhelming the compassion one feels to the people those lines represent.

Milton Friedman is a deeply polarizing figure and I'm well aware that my visceral and violent reaction to the thought of the man is both unfair and unreasonable. As a technical economist his contribution was significant, yet as a proponent of an economics which has been subverted to ruin lives, I can't help but continue to revile him somewhat.

Whatever your opinions are, his was a significant life. I can't help but feel the world lost a giant, if a not entirely benevolent one.