Chapter 1, The Relation between Economic Freedom and Political Freedom Summary and Analysis

Politics and economics are not separate. Freedom in the economy helps to maintain freedom in political arrangements. It is also a component of freedom itself. Many scorn economic freedom as emphasizing materialism but this is a misunderstanding. The man forced to pay social security is sometimes a man forced to pay against his will. The man who would like to exchange goods with someone in another country is forcibly stopped by government tariffs. Without these restrictions, power can be decentralized, and this makes power harder for the government to collect.

We forget how often political and economic institutions have been unfree; most men have lived under tyranny, servitude and misery. The 19th century is a historical exception. However, it is true that free markets are...