Preko bloga prof. Mankiw i Economic Investigations, čitanje za jedno nedjeljno popodne, rad od nepunih 18 stranica Andrei Shleifera sa Harvarda – The Age of Milton Friedman. Shleifer diskutira svjetski ekonomski napredak u proteklih 25 godina i koliko je to posljedica prihvaćanja politike slobodnog tržišta, trgovine, odgovorne fiskalne politike i nižih poreza. Unatoč ekonomskom napredku postignutom diljem svjeta, ekonomisti se još uvijek ne slažu oko uzroka. Zbog toga, Shleifer britko recenzira dvije knjige – jedna koja prihvaća slobodno tržište i povezane politike, druga koja ga odbacuje. Čini mi se da su razlike u knjigama u smislu strategije i politike. Strategija slobodnog tržišta je ispravna, dok mnogo pitanja ostaje otvoreno oko pojedinih ekonomskih politika, tj. pojedinačnih taktika. Da ne odajem previše, samo jedan graf i ulomak iz rada. Svakako za pročitati jer ovo moje kratko pisanje daje nedovoljno priznanje radu.
The last quarter century also saw wide acceptance of free market policies in both
rich and poor countries: from private ownership, to free trade, to responsible budgets, to
lower taxes. Three important events mark the beginning of this period. In 1979, Deng
Xiao Ping started market reforms in China, which over the quarter century lifted
hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. In the same year, Margaret Thatcher was
elected Prime Minister in Britain, and initiated her radical reforms and a long period of
growth. A year later, Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States, and also
embraced free market policies. All three of these leaders professed inspiration from the
work of Milton Friedman. It is natural, then, to refer to the last quarter century as the
Age of Milton Friedman.
The association between free market policies and social progress notwithstanding,
economists remain divided in their assessments of this Age. Two recent books illustrate
the divisions. A collection of papers edited by Leszek Balcerowicz and Stanley Fischer
endorses free market policies. A volume by Joseph Stiglitz, Jose Antonio Ocampo,
Shari Spiegel, Richardo FFrench-Davis, and Deepak Nayyar rejects them. A joint review
of these two books allows for a brief look at both the facts and the disagreements.