Milton Friedman on Equality, Family & Lottery

Dr. Friedman speaks at William & Mary on equality, family and the lottery.

[IrishMarc]

The bit about donating above average income is brilliant

[freetochoosenetwork]

Our full, free Milton Friedman Speaks series is available for streaming at freetochoose.tv

[fleetcenturion]

I'm forced to disagree with Dr. Friedman about family size-- specifically, that he has it ass-backwards. Families can willingly limit their size only AFTER a certain level of productivity is reached. Impoverished areas tend to have bigger families because there is simply more work that has to be done if people are to survive. An impoverished family that limits its size does not free up income, since they have almost none, but rather cuts off needed income, otherwise earned by family members.

[fleetcenturion]

A single person with no skills, no education, and no job opportunities has NO time to devote to building personal capital. The only way to survive is for extended families to pool their income and resources.
What will make that family you describe productive is that those children do not stay under 5 forever, and will soon be able to earn income of their own. The family invests for its future in the only way it can.

[PetrSima]

thanks, for those still looking its from the lecture Equality and Freedom in the Free Enterprise System

[EderikSchneider]

Milton Friedman- Without liberty you can't have either liberty or quality. And what I take from that is that people need a certain level of freedom to be successful for society. So that society can be as successful as possible so you have as many successful people as possible.

[PetrSima]

does someone have the full version of this? i cant find it

[TheMomanslm]

Fleet... the experience of the motivated uneducated and unskilled prompts them to become educated and skilled at whatever they choose. The unmotivated just wait on someone else to provide.

[pacificbudz]

productivity and family size has no relation. it is more likely that size of family and education are more closely related then your example. i could be wrong, just my thoughts. negativity for sure isn't the answer to anything :)

[fleetcenturion]

Poor people in 3rd world countries usually have little education and cannot command much of a wage. Their children usually provide at least 1/4 of the family income. Someone in grinding poverty with 25% less income will die, simple as that.
As for family planning, which I'm sure you refer to, the fact that poorer families have more children has nothing to do with education and everything to do with the security and continuation of their family, since odds are not all of them will live.

[spec]

That is not why impoverished areas have larger families. It is your contention that the work needed to be done for one person to take care of themselves is MORE than the work needed to raise a family? That, say, a family with three children under 5 years old is more productive, somehow, than the single person? A single person has MUCH more time to devote to personal capital than does a head of a family.Family brings other benefits, of course. But I don't think you can make your argument logically