Milton Friedman's Capitalism and freedom is a phenomenally readable book. He argued for, I think you heard for private social security in there. 100% sure loading exchange rates,. getting rid of agricultural subsidies. And if you were looking back on it, he was wise. We didn't get all those things. But we did get a volunteer army, which is really an extraordinary thing.
Is the perfect really the enemy of the good? Or is it the other way around? In 2008, Duke University economist Michael Munger ran for governor and proposed increasing school choice through vouchers for the state's poorest counties. But some lovers of liberty argued that it's better to fight for eliminating public schools instead of trying to improve them. Munger realized his fellow free-marketers come in two flavors: directionalists--who take our political realities as given and try to move outcomes closer to the ideal--and destinationists--who want no compromises with what they see as the perfect outcome. Listen as Munger talks to EconTalk's Russ Roberts about two different strategies for achieving political goals. Along the way, they discuss rent control, the minimum wage, and why free-market policies are so rare.