Milton Friedman was Right

From Charlottesville to Chicago, newspapers across the country are plastered with headlines and front-page stories detailing the recent government shutdown. Tensions rage high and an end to the shutdown does not appear to be in the near future. Milton Friedman warned about the danger of political channels controlling such divisive issues in chapter two of his book Capitalism and Freedom entitled “The Role of Government in a Free Society.”  Friedman argues:

The use of political channels, while inevitable, tends to strain the social cohesion essential for a stable society. … Every extension of the range of issues for which explicit agreement is sought strains further the delicate threads that hold society together. If it goes so far as to touch an issue on which men feel deeply yet differently, it may well disrupt the society (23-24).

This prediction of political strain leading to governmental/societal disruption has certainly proven true in the past few days! Most likely Friedman would argue that healthcare, an issue for which people hold strongly conflicting viewpoints, should be relegated to the private sphere in an effort to reduce the wearing effects of tension on society.