Showcased since 2006 in Dot TV on Demand, the Idea Channel TV has consistently “streamed the power of ideas” through a large assortment of world class educational Television. Predominately featured on Idea Channel TV at this time, in honor of Milton Friedman, is all parts of the ground-breaking “Free to Choose” series. During Dot TV’s Golden Age, “Free to Choose” as it originally aired on PBS in 1980, as well as an updated 1990 version is available on a unique Dot TV.
Anthony Galima, U4H’s CEO said, “It is wonderful to see such brilliant and powerful media readily available streaming through a Dot TV. I remember watching this when I was in school and suggest if you have seen this PBS series revisit it; and if you’ve never seen it, there is no time better than today to explore this memorable series.” Milton Friedman (July 31, 1912 – November 16, 2006) spent a lifetime exploring freedom, individual rights, and prosperity. Freidman is perhaps the most influential American economist of the 20th Century. He was a statistician, public intellectual, and recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. His timeless theoretical and empirical research regarding consumption analysis, monetary history and theory, and the complexity of stabilization policy ring true today.
America is hardly a “free country” because of the extent of government intervention in the economic lives of the people. When watching “Free to Choose” on Idea Channel TV, you don’t have to know anything about Adam Smith, “the invisible hand,” Keynesian economics, the stock market, capitalism, socialism, free trade, international trade, global markets, and free enterprise. This Fifteen Volume Series is engaging and easy to follow.
Volume 1 of the updated 1990 version is introduced by a casual Arnold Schwarzenegger sharing his “American Dream” experience. Schwarzenegger discusses his desire to be the best he could be, individualism, and why only in America could his dreams become a reality in America. Schwarzenegger states in America you are “free to live your own life, pursue your own goals, chase your own rainbow; without the government breathing down your neck or standing in your shoes.” In “The Power of the Market” (1990 Volume 1), Dr. Friedman illustrates “There is not a single person in the world who can make this pencil.” Freedman explains that the creation of even a simple object like a pencil requires the knowledge of many people, lumberjacks, steel manufacturers, miners, etc. These people may not speak the same language, they may not know or like one another, yet the market enables them to combine knowledge and effort to produce wealth.
“The Tyranny of Control” (1990) we learn what role government should and must play in our free society. “When anyone complains about unfair competition, consumers beware.” In Volume 2, Friedman explores the writings of Adam Smith who, 200 years ago warned that businesses always try to sell for the highest price and will try to control the market to do so. He goes on to say, without government assistance, businesses cannot force people to buy their goods; businesses cannot force people to do anything. When the government allows competition to be free and robust, consumers will always get the lowest possible prices.
Freedom & Prosperity (1990) is introduced by none other than Ronald Reagan. “Being free to choose should be every person’s birthright. Everywhere in the world, and especially in the United States, we need to keep government on the sidelines.” In Volume 3, Milton says “Everybody knows what needs to be done. The property that is now in the hands of the state needs to be gotten into the hands of private people who can use it in accordance with their own interests and values.” Eastern Europe has observed the history of free markets in the United States and wants to copy our success. Ironically, we seem unable to turn away from the temptations of socialism despite its long history of bankrupting economies.
In Volume 4 we explore “The Failure of Socialism” (1990). This volume is full of information valuable to all citizens of free societies. Are the global governments banning together and trying to fix the problems they created and “help us” a little bit too much? “Parental choice, parents choosing the teachers, parents monitoring the schooling,” is Friedman’s answer to the problems in education. In almost every case, giving individuals the power to choose, to set their own course, always leads to better results than centrally planned activities. That applies to schooling and every other activity in a modern society. After watching this volume you will be armed with information that can assist you in better understanding the Obama Administration’s Stimulus Packages, Government Bailouts, efforts to stabilize the banking industry, educational policies, and borrowing money from nations like China.
“The society that puts equality before freedom will end up with neither. The society that puts freedom before equality will end up with a great measure of both.” Volume 5 wraps up the updated 1990 version of “Free to Choose” and discusses “the desire to have more.” Friedman points out that the most governments can do is provide all citizens with equal opportunity to use their time and abilities as they best see fit, in pursuit of a better life. In society we are always quick to see all that others have and we do not, and we fail to acknowledge all that others do. In today’s global recession the media is beginning to villanize rich people and large corporations, but we forget many rich and successful entrepreneurs, athletes, entertainers, and people who “have tremendous wealth” create jobs and do wonderful things all of the time.
Americans voluntarily work hard every day, and voluntarily donate money to assist with wells in Africa, or help abused animals, or feed the homeless. Americans are perhaps the most altruistic in nature because through hard work they have been able to prosper, and take tremendous pride in assisting those in need. Americans understand as Friedman articulates that, “Life is unfair. There’s nothing fair about one man being born blind and another man being born with sight.” That doesn’t mean Americans are callused, they just understand a blind man and sighted man are both men capable of living a good and prosperous life. The basic belief of “sharing the wealth” is an economic farce.
Free market society is not perfect, but it is certainly the best. You cannot diminish poverty by limiting the income of others. Equal opportunity is the American Dream, and that’s a market economy. Free to Choose is truly “a survival kit for you and your family.” To find out more about and view this monumental series check out Idea Channel TV today!