Lanny Ebenstein: The Indispensable Milton Friedman

"As much as he was a great public intellectual, a great scholar, he was also a great teacher," Lanny Ebenstein says about the subject of his new book, The Indispensable Milton Friedman: Essays on Politics and Economics. Ebenstein's collection of neglected articles, interviews, and lectures provides fresh insight as to why, even six years after his death, the Nobel Prize-winning economist continues to be revered around the world.

Spanning six decades of thought, Ebenstein's book shows how Milton Friedman, more than any other economist, transformed the national debate about capitalism in the second half of the 20th century. Rising to prominence when Keynesianism and five-year plans had become mainstream around the world, Friedman's persuasive arguments for individual liberty pushed against the current. From his advocacy of school vouchers, to a contemporary, free-market solution to our healthcare crisis, his perspective on world events remain as compelling today as ever.

Would Friedman have supported the Federal Reserve's stimulative policy as a proper response to our recessionary times? How should our economy react to the imminent retirement of the Baby Boom generation? Lanny Ebenstein recently sat down with ReasonTV's Nick Gillespie to answer these questions and discuss Friedman's enduring legacy as a scholar, teacher, and public intellectual.

About five minutes and forty seconds long.

Camera by Josh Swain and Zach Weissmueller. Edited by Todd Krainin.

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv for downloadable versions and subscribe to ReasonTV's YouTube Channel to receive notifications when new material goes live.