Milton Friedman and the Socialists

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Thomas DiLorenzo relates a story about the socialists and Dr. Friedman.

Friedman and Socialists
Posted by Thomas DiLorenzo at 12:04 PM

I once sat next to Milton and Rose Friedman for three days at a Liberty Fund Seminar. He said he was so hated by socialists that there once was an organized effort to follow him around the world to confront him at public events, even spitting on him and his wife Rose. The reason for this, Milton said, was that a few of Arnold Harberger's students at Chicago who were from Chile graduated and returned home to convince their government to cut taxes, privatize industry, and adopt freer trade. Since they became known as "the Chicago boys," and later invited Milton to speak at Chilean universities, the international communist movement designated him as Enemy Number One. He said he often had to sneak into banquet halls through the kitchen to avoid the mob of youngsters waiting to hocker on him (and his wife) as he approached the podium to speak -- in Europe, South America, anywhere.

It is truly a sad day for me. Milton was a tireless champion of freedom who set the high water mark with regard to having influence as an intellectual. It's hard to think of anyone who can hope to be as effective as he was. As a college student I studied his use of logic, rhetoric, and writing style over and over again because I thought he was by far the most persuasive economist in the world, whether you agreed with him or not. May he rest in peace.