Mourning the Loss of Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman, one of the most influential economists in history, died today at the age of 94.
Mr. Friedman died of heart failure after being taken to hospital near his home in San Francisco, his daughter, Janet Martell, said today. His wife Rose Friedman, who co-authored many of his books, survives him.
…Mr. Friedman was awarded the Nobel prize in 1976. He has long championed the cause of political and economic freedom and the links between the two. He has originated, or been associated with, many breakthroughs in economics since the 1950s. He is best known for explaining the role of the money supply in economic and inflation fluctuations. He also, with this year’s Nobel prize winner Edmund Phelps, developed the theory in the 1960s that policy makers couldn’t achieve a permanent tradeoff between lower unemployment and higher inflation, and that efforts to do so would simply result in the same unemployment rate and higher inflation, a view that holds sway at major central banks today, including the Fed.
What an incredible lifetime contribution to the field of economics. He will be missed.
Q: Which economy do you expect to be the biggest 75 years from now: U.S., European Union, China?
A: China
Q: Which country comes closest to getting economic policy right today?
A: Hong Kong, thanks to the legacy of the British administration.
Q: Who was the most important economist of the 20th century besides you?
A: John Maynard Keynes
Q: Who deserved the Nobel but didn’t get it?
A: Joan Robinson and Peter Bauer
Q: What single breakthrough in economic thought in the past 50 years has had the most significant impact on the every day lives of people?
A: Acceptance of the idea that inflation is a monetary phenomenon. It has produced by now more than two decades of relatively low inflation in most developed countries, relatively stable economic output, a high level of employment and of well being.
Q: In what sphere of life, if any, do you think it most important to limit the influence of market forces?
A: Ownership of human beings.
Q: What do you consider the world’s single greatest economic challenge today?
A: Holding down the size and scope of government
Q: Do you think the fruits of the global economy will be distributed more evenly 50 years from now, or less evenly?
A: More evenly. The major sources of income differences today are between the developed and the undeveloped countries. This inter-country difference will decline as globalization spreads and more and more countries find a way to achieve economic growth and prosperity.
–David Wessel from WSJ.com
(Somewhat) Similar Posts:
From Milton Friedman, part of a series: ...From Milton Friedman, part of a series: ...From Milton Friedman, part in a series: ......