WINNER: TOP 25 LIBERTARIAN DOCUMENTARIES
In this landmark Free to Choose series, Nobel-Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman guides the viewer through eleven documentaries on the workings of the market and its relation to human liberty. [ Free to Choose credits: Executive Producer: Bob Chitester/ Journalist: Milton Friedman/ 50 min/ Documentary/ Libertarianism 101]
Just click the image below. It will take you directly to a Vimeo recording of the episode entitled “Freedom and Prosperity.” Links for the other episodes are below.
This is a persuasive and entertaining exposition of libertarian ideas, and it’s a pleasure to see them presented with such clarity and charm. It’s a testament to the power of Friedman’s “radical” proposals—and perhaps this series itself—that some have already been implemented and others have become common subjects for discussion. Nonetheless, most viewers will not find the series excessively dated. The underlying theme of liberty versus state control is everlasting.
The Free to Choose Network has kindly made the complete episodes available online, so episode links on this page render the full documentary not just a trailer.
Episodes of Free to Choose (1980)
Part 1, The Power of the Market
Examines the logic and results of a properly functioning free market, with some emphasis on Hong Kong as an example of a relatively free economy.
Part 2, The Tyranny of Control
Discusses the pernicious effects of government intervention in the economy.
Part 3, Anatomy of a Crisis
Explains how the Great Depression was a product of Federal Reserve mismanagement.
Part 4, From Cradle to Grave
Illustrates how good intentions can lead to bad results in the area of public assistance. Suggests a negative income tax as a solution.
Part 5, Created Equal
Counters demands for material equality with the argument that “pursuit of equality before freedom will achieve neither; pursuit of freedom before equality will produce a large measure of both.”
Part 6, What’s Wrong With Our Schools
Demonstrates that voluntary educational efforts are superior to government schools. Proposes vouchers as one solution to the current mess.
Part 7, Who Protects the Consumer?
Examines the increasing role of regulation in the economy. Shows how well-intended regulations can have perverse effects.
Part 8, Who Protects the Worker?
Discusses the role of unions and protective legislation in the lives of ordinary workers.
Part 9, How to Cure Inflation
Debunks myths regarding the causes of inflation and lays the blame for it firmly at the doorstep of the Federal Reserve.
Part 10, How to Stay Free
Makes the case for further constitutional limits on government powers and for a popular understanding of and appreciation for liberty. Emphasizes the dangers inherent in the concentration of power.
Episodes of Free to Choose (1991)
A decade after the original ten episodes, four were updated and remade but production quality was not equal to the original episodes (found above). However, one new episode, Freedom and Prosperity, was added to the series.
Freedom and Prosperity
Discusses the reluctance of Eastern European governments to abandon socialism, and recommends rapid privatization of state assets and adoption of a free market.
How to See It
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Links
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More Films About: Pro-Capitalism
Wikipedia: Milton Friedman
FreeToChoose.tv
The FreetoChoose Network
Book: FreetoChoose: A Personal Statement
Book: Capitalism and Freedom: Fortieth Anniversary Edition
Book: Why Government Is the Problem (Essays in Public Policy)
