F is for Friedman's Dream

Time Magazine: Dec. 19, 1969

Economist Milton Friedman is the father of the school privatization movement.  He believed in a largely unregulated, unfettered free market for virtually everything and was an early champion of charter schools, choice, and vouchers.  We see evidence of his theories playing out in abundance today in every facet of public policy in the U.S.

For those who think that it's outrageous to believe that there is really an ongoing and deliberate campaign to privatize schools in the U.S., take note that Friedman's ideas are highly respected in libertarian, wealth, and power circles.  He was awarded the Nobel prize for economic science in 1976 and up until his death in 2006, he was sought after as a speaker, professor, and adviser to US government leaders and presidents.  

• Milton Friedman Biography (Hoover Institution at Stanford)
• "Public Schools: Make Them Private" by Milton Friedman
• Excerpt from the Introduction to The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by Naomi Klein, a book that explores Friedman's ideas about exploiting major crises for corporate and private profit
• Privatizing Education in New Orleans: The Commodification of Education 
• Privatizing Public Schools: Leveling the Playing Field or Political Football?
• ALEC Exposed: Milton Friedman's Little Shop of Horrors