When I think of Jimmy Carter’s energy policy, Arthur Scargill at the head of the British mineworkers’ union, and Mao’s Cultural Revolution, I have a hard time disagreeing with Friedman about the world in the mid-1970’s. But there I would draw the line: while movement in Friedman’s direction was by and large positive over the past generation, the gains to be had from further movement in that direction are far less certain.
弗里德曼会回应说鉴于世界在1975年时的情况，朝着他的那套原则方向的行动是一大进步。当我回想起吉米•卡特的能源政策、亚瑟•斯卡吉尔领导英国矿工工会和毛泽东的文化大革命，我很难不认同弗氏关于1970年代中期的世界的观点。但我还是要划出一道界线：尽管上一代人沿着弗里德曼的方向前进在很大程度上是积极的，但继续沿着这一方向行进所能带来的益处却很难确定。