Thursday, March 28, AD 2024 12:49pm

Milton Friedman on the Loss of Freedom

His one hundredth birthday is a good time to view the above video by Milton Friedman on the loss of freedom.  Dead since 2006, Friedman’s words ring as true in 2012 as they did in 1980 when the video was taped, as to how our freedom is frittered away in ever greater reliance on an ever more powerful State.

 

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Paul Primavera
Tuesday, July 31, AD 2012 7:11am

“We are getting what the public at large is asking for.”

1st Samuel chapter 8:

1 When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his first-born son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beer-sheba. 3 Yet his sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice. 4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint for us a king to govern us like all the nations.” 6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8 According to all the deeds which they have done to me, * from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9 Now then, hearken to their voice; only, you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.” 10 So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking a king from him. 11 He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; 12 and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. 15 He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. 16 He will take your menservants and maidservants, and the best of your cattle* and your asses, and put them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18 And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the LORD will not answer you in that day.” 19 But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; and they said, “No! but we will have a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.” 21 And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the LORD. 22 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Hearken to their voice, and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”

Paul W Primavera
Paul W Primavera
Tuesday, July 31, AD 2012 7:29am

PS, I have had atheists tell me directly that they deliberately intend to marginalize religion into the closet. That is their stated goal and aim.

exNOAAman
exNOAAman
Tuesday, July 31, AD 2012 11:26am

I am not able to listen to the video just now, but Paul’s excellent choice of scripture makes up for that.
Thanks and well done, PMP.

Tony H
Tony H
Wednesday, August 1, AD 2012 5:07am

Excellent clip. I had not heard the term “prison state” before, but it’s apt.
I think some things have changed since this was filmed. Too many of our citizens now want an expanded government, not a smaller government. They know where we are headed, and they are quite happy to hasten our arrival. I would disagree that the fault lies with our political structures. The fault lies not in them, but in ourselves.

Cayla M
Cayla M
Monday, August 6, AD 2012 7:16pm

Tony is right, the fault lies with us. We allowed our constitution to be twisted and misinterpreted. Why did we let freedom OF religion become freedom FROM religion? When we allowed that to go unchallenged, we all bowed to the false god of secular humanism. We stood by, barely making a sound when they decided that pre meditated murder was a woman’s right. Don’t get me wrong, I believe a woman has the right to choose what happens to her body, but that choice must be made BEFORE another innocent body resides in hers.

How many people voted in favor of this prison state in order to gain a shiny bobble or two? We have sold ourselves and our children into slavery, and the worst part is, many of us are too blind to see it. I cringe when I see not only my brothers and sisters, lead by our priest bow and worship the great Obama. It breaks my heart that many feel that compromising our beliefs for self gain in the welfare line is but a small price to pay. We need to get back to the literal word of our constitution, and start voting with our conscience, not with the hope of an easy way out of every situation we find ourselves in. If you are uninformed, or unable to search the truth for yourself, do not by the salesmans line, stay home and don’t vote.

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