Why Government is the Problem...Milton Friedman's Viewpoint

An Independent Abstract 

In the course of economic study one occasionally crosses works of scholars that represent "show-stoppers" as we called them in the military.  In the context of political economics, the publication of Dr. Friedman's work by the Hoover Institute is simply too well stated to overlook.

The following is an extract from his work within the section entitled executive summary:

"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" Friedman argues.

"The difficult task is understanding why government is the problem".  This topic is the basis of a research paper I am currently working on with a cohort at Pepperdine University. 

Friedman states, "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."  www.hoover.org   

After directly viewing the actions of those (bureaucrats) that represent the U.S. interests in Afghanistan, as consistent with the main stream citizen, I submit the image or brand being represented does not reflect the heart and soul of the U.S. people. These representations offered in the full-light of day to the American people would perhaps serve to explain why this country is rapidly falling from grace in the global community.