On July 31, 1703, Daniel Defoe — who would later become famous as the author of Robinson Crusoe and other literary works — was placed in a pillory for the crime of seditious libel. The sedition pertained to a satirical pamphlet he had published, “The Shortest-Way with the Dissenters; Or, Proposals for the Establishment of the Church.” The mob pelted him with flowers.
On the same date in 1912, Milton Friedman was born. Friedman became one of the most influential economists of the 20th century, and one of the most effective advocates of free markets, as well. His books include Capitalism and Freedom and two famous collaborations, A Monetary History of the United States (with Anna Schwartz) and Free to Choose (with his wife, Rose Director Friedman).
One reply on “DeFoe Pelted”
As an economist, I have various disagreements with Friedman, some quite profound. But I often note that what has made the present order of economic nonsense possible is the death of Hayek in ’92 and especially of Friedman in ’06. Friedman was pithy and after 1980 had become impossible for the mainstream of the media to ignore. Some living economists can express themselves as well or better in defense of economic liberalism, but they do not have access to the stage.