Milton Frieman on the free market and pencils

I wrote about pencils, and whether they were sexy or not, here. A little while ago I stumbled across this short video by Milton Friedman, discussing the same theme. It runs for 2 mins 10 sec. I think he tells the story rather well.



Friedman is perhaps best known for his book "Free to Choose" - and also for acting as a part-time advisor to Maggie Thatcher - for which he is famous or infamous depending on your point of view. He had an interesting life.

His parents were Jewish immigrants in America and worked in a sweat shop. Despite this he writes in defense of sweat shops, showing how, for those who have nothing (perhaps not even the right language), they present you with the first rung of a ladder that you can climb. And present an alternative to exclusion; the fate of many people who are, instead, on benefits.