Cretin or Crook?: Naomi Klein on Milton Friedman

Update (05.20.08): GREAT review of the book by Tyler Cowen.

I made it almost the entire way through this paper, about 9 pages I think. I've also seen a few video clips of Ms. Klein's speeches. Her portrayals of Milton Friedman and free markets are nearly 180 degrees off. Can she possibly be that daft?! If not, what is her motive? (pic via Wikipedia)

I keep going back and forth between being angry and feeling sorry for her. How anyone could read what Friedman wrote, listen to what he said, and saw what Milton Friedman did ... and think that he was anything other than a wonderful, caring, brilliant man that cared about the economic and political freedom of people, is a complete mystery to me.

[The Copious Dissent blog has done some great work covering this story, see the links below.]

The Klein Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Polemics: "Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine purports to be an expos�of the ruthless nature of free-market capitalism and its chief recent exponent, Milton Friedman. Klein argues that capitalism goes hand in hand with dictatorship and brutality and that dictators and other unscrupulous political figures take advantage of 'shocks'—catastrophes real or manufactured—to consolidate their power and implement unpopular market reforms. Klein cites Chile under General Augusto Pinochet, Britain under Margaret Thatcher, China during the Tiananmen Square crisis, and the ongoing war in Iraq as examples of this process. Klein's analysis is hopelessly flawed at virtually every level. Friedman's own words reveal him to be an advocate of peace, democracy, and individual rights."

At least some people appreciate Dr. Friedman.
University Plans Institute To Honor Milton Friedman

Copious Dissent - Your Daily Dose of Liberty: Milton Friedman Debates Naomi Klein: "Since she loves to distort what Milton Friedman stood for, I thought I would let Milton debate her in his own words. He makes her look like a fool."

All Naomi Klein posts at Copious Dissent.