Milton Friedman Describes Hong Kong as an Example of the Free Market System

[@chikmadisonwiusa2014]

Born in Hong Kong... June 30, 1977... Free Market Works... Also, talk to the people in every major Chinatown in the USA and also in Canada...... Most of them are from Hong Kong... Speaks Cantonese...

[@chaotiongsai]

This video was from 40 years ago. Hong Kong has transited to a services-oriented economy (banking, legal, finance).

[@jasontch3979]

Look I'm a Hong Konger. Hong Kong is one of the most free market on earth, yet in my view it is still not free enough , which I find very sad.

[@dranelemakol]

You guys were to Asia what America was to the world in the 19th century.

[@guitarsANDcars39]

GET RID OF THE CCP

[@danielreardon6453]

Good luck with the CCP buddy

[@yangkang9262]

This comment aged like a fine wine.

[@erminlegler7812]

4th of July celebrator checking in . . . . BRING FREEDOM BACK TO HONG KONG!!!

[@johnkennedy4365]

It’s great too see all these Hong Kongers speaking on this. I hope one day Hong Kong will be free with no British governor or CCP

[@a.leunghkg9919]

I am a Hong Konger. Sorry Prof Friedman. Hong Kong government we have today has failed you.

[@leandrovinhas]

A. Leung HKG why is that?

[@chunkiyeung9499]

@@leandrovinhas it's because Hong Kong now affect by the Chinese Communist Party Government, which destroied the industry, market and policy fairness. Also the invasion from mainland china abusing the basic social affairs and ruin the housing policy. Recently, Hong Kong police spray the expired tear gas to the protestors and the press who without any weapons. Also, a frist-aid nurse was shooted by the police. The government of HK no longer let the citizen free to choose, but force the people give all business advantage to mainland China. In year 2017 an Observation Wheel invested by Swiss AEX which spent 0.2 billion HKD, was givien to a shell corporation with China business background.the new company just spent 100000 HKD to buy the 0.2 billion Business! The corruption now is very common between hk and chinese government and the businessman. There are still some hopes, please support the Hong Kong protestors against the Chinese Extradition Law, which protect the safety, credit ,professional and capitalism of Hong Kong. As a HongKonger, we need the people from other country support, thank you very much!

[@shermanngjazz]

@@chunkiyeung9499 #StandWithHongKong

[@tituslafrombois1164]

Why don't we have people like this making programming anymore?

[@jameschou888]

HK went to shit after 1997 but most of Friedman's point are valid for the Hong Kong before the handover

[@piehamcake1]

+James Chou umm hong kong is still doing great, i dont think you know what you are talking about

[@jameschou888]

+piehamcake1 So crony capitalism and CCP interference in daily life are good things?

[@piehamcake1]

true, government inerference always scews things up and leads to crony capitalism

[@jameschou888]

+piehamcake1 It's gotten worse under PRC-backed mismanagement

[@codeagent47]

+piehamcake1 If government doesn't interference, who is going to protect human rights, cruel working environment, lobar abuse, pay sick leave, holiday vacation, worker's insurance, and employee' benefit. Free market capitalist isn't going to raise single dime for their employee if wasn't for government interference.

[@gamania122]

We... failed to protect what we had...

[@lagillas]

USA is 18th on economic freedom. Is falling down so hard, that maybe in 2050 or less you'll have the same economic freedom as Brazil.

[@lengskilee1952]

hong kong is one of the most free market economy in the world until 1997...i just love milton friedman.learn about him in the polytechnic 1973...

[@manawyddanivomagus1096]

Makes Hong Kong look like an economic paradise. I am glad they are doing well from it, I wish we would follow their example.

[@mikimilo3365]

Capitalism Works

[@floopy312]

for the rich

[@hkboy1236]

Capitalism sucks! Look at the housing prices of HK! Few can afford a SMALL house (in western standard)in HK except the rich capitalist pigs!!!

[@mutantbaby1672]

floopy312 Capitalism works for the hard working and the ingenious, not for clueless fucktards.

[@TheFredrikBakkee]

HKBoy123 In Hong Kong prices are high because there is a lack of space for building.

[@piehamcake1]

+HKBoy123 then move to communist china

[@neobourgeoischristum5540]

always a place in my heart for hot moms and economics.

[@taiterobinson793]

The irony of this is that Shenzhen was established as a SEZ in 1980. 40 years later, Shenzhen seems more economically liberal than Hong Kong. This doesn’t of course justify the corporatism that does of course exist in Mainland China

[@NathanSaor1798]

Well it’s good China has learnt from its old colonial neighbour. Once Hong Kong was a place for those fleeing the famine and now Shenzhen is a place for fleeing Hong Kong industry. I wouldn’t say it’s more economically liberal but certainly in many aspects like taxation and wage costs it is more competitive. Hainan is much more liberal. The corporatisation of state owned enterprises was still better than before and the state only really acts as an asset manager now but it still isn’t great. China really shows though that just a sprinkle of liberalisation can cause immense growth in such a short period of time - growth they struggled to handle at some points

[@shermanngjazz]

As a Hong Konger currently living in the US, I'm sorry Dr. Friedman, Hong Kong has failed you :(

[@lamdatau6599]

Well said. As an Anarcho Capitalist I agree.

[@yydd4954]

Singapore and Hong Kong 🔥

[@Alexroberts666]

"president obama, are you listening? *cue chinese music* catchy, isn't it?"

[@yohaha]

Being from Hong Kong I understand full well how large corp get to manipulate the market. It is when government gets involved. Kick government out of the private sector and let them only play the referee role without punishing or subsidizing any parties. This way there is no way you can have mega corps, because fierce competitions would keep big corps to their toes.

[@reklaws52]

"Critics suggest that the government, which once promised to build 85,000 units a year, is in thrall to the island's property tycoons, who are keen to keep apartment prices high. Prices have risen 76 per cent since 2008."

[@yohaha]

This is the last economics lesson for you. It is probably too difficult to understand for Keynesians but here it goes. Where does the government get the money? RIGHT, they have to suck it out from the private sector! Therefore, that money the government sucked out would have been invested anyway if it were available to the private sector, and the private sector would use it better in general BECAUSE THEY HAVE THEIR OWN STAKE IN IT, unlike gov't that just sucked the resource from private hands.

[@evanr00]

There may never be a 100% free market, but the results clearly show the freer the better, and Hong Kong is the best example of this. You are way over generalizing to say all companies want to manipulate the market, they can only do so by having govt willing to help them do it, but innovation is what drives competition.

[@SLAVESweARE]

Greetings..... How is the HK that Milton outlines in this video clip different from the one you are familiar with today? Thanks!

[@yohaha]

It looks like you are 5 years younger than I am and you don't get to see the Hong Kong Friedman described. I was lucky enough to see the last moment when capitalism and free market in Hong Kong still existed (end of 80s). The Hong Kong you live in today is NOT the one Friedman showed (this is old video, just look at the harbor, a lot of the buildings are different today as shown in the video). It's now up to you and people at your age to revive the Hong Kong that allows people to succeed.

[@joeswanson733]

the las time hong kong had 4.5 million people was in 1977... so this from 45 years ago as of 2022.

[@dimadamagecs]

Hello from Ukraine 🇺🇦🕊️

[@JohnnySalami-jo4jh]

Ahhh yes the Hong Kong dream - where you too could own your very own 2 meter wide x 1 meter long cage in the sky 🤩

[@yohaha]

I certainly hope that will happen. It's true that without the change of mind, it's just as easy for a great system to collapse. US was once a free market and capitalism at its best. It did have its problems but thanks to minarchy individuals were able to resolve the issues. Look how it became a nanny state. HK was a free economy, and it's also adopting a nanny state mentality and abandon what worked. Yes, if there is a generic mind shift, RBE could work. That's an unknown world at this time tho

[@yohaha]

"a demand of jamanium would be accessed in community" This is the problem here. Demand is limitless. I agree with the premise that resources are limitless and it's a matter of if we have the tech to harness it. However, no matter you like it or not, at one point you only have limited supply, and when you assess a resource both supply/demand must put into consideration. The beauty of free market is it requires NO governance. The public will tweak everything along the way based on supply/demand.

[@psusac]

@Seiku I agree. The problem is there is no such thing as a free market, and there never has been. All governments find it in their interest to manipulate the market, if only by printing currency. In addition, all companies find it in their interest to manipulate the market to stack the deck in their favor - thus stifling innovation. Many of the largest economies in the world are corporations. Do you really think they do not attempt to govern the markets? Freidman was an academic.

[@yohaha]

On top of that, I haven't even mentioned the political challenge in RBE. What system is there to prevent the society to become a technocractic society? When the US started with pretty much minarchy (minimal government), in 2 centuries it turned into today's tyranny. What is there to prevent a technology governed society to become ruled by technocrats?

[@screenapple1660]

This means makes sense to people of Hong Kong. Hong Kong is more about rages to the riches. They can choose to be rich or not to be rich. Freemarket allows you choose whatever you want. choose not be rich. choose to be rich or you can have both. you can buy any newspaper you want to read. you have don't have to like the government either.

[@peter83502]

during the late 70s and early part of the 80s it was a very ture statement, the problem that you see nowadays is because of the failed goverment policy, if you look at what the goverment has done in the past 15 years, in terms of education, medical care, infastructure, industry developement etc. it has been stagnated. Because the goverment has been doing exactly the same thing with little or no vision at all. That's excatly the reason why you have a few competitor in those area that u described,

[@bcnicholas123]

Capitalism will always be the only solution

[@PijusONLINE]

Who's playing by who's what? It's a FREE market, you said it.

[@yohaha]

Yes I heard of resource-based economy. I heard of the Venus Project and the Zeigeist Movement. I was actually very excited when I first learned about it, but after a lot of research I learned it doesn't work. The problem is the system lacks a replacement of the price signal. Let say today we found this thing called jamanium. We don't have the tech yet though to find a lot of it. Who in the society should use it to benefit others? Without price signal, you cannot determine. That's a nutshell.

[@meetKEL]

Sorry, i make a mistake, should be "a demand of jamanium would be assessed in community", people would be asked their need about jamanium, then produce accordingly.

[@psychonaut1502]

Anyone have any idea what that song that keeps playing is called?

[@reklaws52]

"Hong Kong has always had a largely hidden underclass. But in the 14 years since the island was handed back to the Chinese, the number of poor has increased by a staggering 50 per cent to 1.26 million, according to the government."

[@samnicholson5051]

Where are the shots of Kowloon Walled City?

[@protek86]

Kowloon walled city is a small section of china inside Hong Kong

[@aCloudOfHaze]

agreed, more and more government, healthcare problem is getting worse

[@Silvertestrun]

Ty

[@RebelConserve]

The only mistake the privatization of Hong Kong has made was the random circle in the highway at 1:07

[@fabiogaucho77]

us this in public domain?

[@Whoo711]

For example, HK has 7 million people now but only, like... 2 or 3 grocery store companies?

[@yohaha]

Good luck man, I truly hope you guys will succeed. I on my side see that the current system is so sick now we need to revert back to something that worked. Let's hope this sinking ship can be rescued before it totally goes down to the water (and make sure you have your lifeboat ready, just in case the ship cannot be saved)

[@pebblepod30]

What worked (for normal ppl) is what Singapore did, not what Hong Kong did. Hong Kong had a disasterous capitaist, no choice housing market. It is compete with the wealthiest for a roof over your head, or by homeless. Singapore (run by Lee Kwan Yew) was not ideological like Milton Friedman so strongly is, and did what worked and made sense. Singapore had a regulated free market in some areas, Govt ownership of public services; successful Govt Corporations, and MOSTLY Public Housing aimed at workers & real pensioners. I recall Milton Friedman taking credit for Singapore, but didn't Lee Kwan Yew often do the exact opposite to what Friedman recommended or cared about? As I understand it, Friedman's economic philosophy actually got applied in the US and destroyed it for the poor & middle class to the same extent it was applied. And his Qantaty Theory of Money turned out to be flat out wrong: many times Govts created new money without inflation. I agree with MMT that money creation could create inflation & one should be careful, but there isn't much evidence of it yet. I challenge you to give me any historical examples of money creation causing inflation by itself, without first severve shortages of goods (yes, i mean the famous examples too!!)

[@meetKEL]

For me, there's no good or bad people, the environment shapes people's values. All the social problems are sick symptoms from an outdated economic system. Capitalism and monetary system were once great, but become useless and detrimental to us in the advancement of technology. A RBE may happen or may not, but it's the most beautiful concept I've ever discover, i will keep spending time on it.

[@charlieabbot3649]

Jimmy KEL Agreed to the part about Capitalism being outdated.

[@yohaha]

I can tell you "functioned" free market. US had one. Hong Kong had one to a lesser extent. It is when people start to ditch the free market and adopt the nanny state mentality that these great places start going downhill.

[@joeswanson733]

1977 hong kong... the end of an era.

[@N330AA]

It's true, he's a good guy though.

[@Forestadash]

What has a economic freedom to do with gun control? We are talking about economic freedom not individual freedom (witch is also very important but that's another thing). Other most free economic countries are :New Zealand, Switzerland , Canada.

[@BorreLira]

Wish we had more Friedmans and less Trumps in these days of trade wars and stupid tariffs!

[@Quancept]

India too need to adopt real free-market. What we have is a pseudo-free market. We have one of the worst bureaucracy in the world, filled with unskilled, corrupt leaders and officers. They need to step back and allow companies and people who are willing to start business to do whatever they wish immediately. We are still in the post-independence hangover- fearing that western imperials would force in with with their business and ideas and take away our money and somehow suppress our 'culture'. Let people decide what they want. India is a result of 'failure of socialism'.

[@yohaha]

I will just end it with this, a quote from YOUR founding father: "The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not." And no, you can go ahead believing what you want. You have your freedom to do so. Just take the responsibility and don't cry and ask gov't to help when your gov't successfully destroys your nation.

[@yohaha]

It's not like the British did it to help Hong Kong people. Talk to people who lived through the 40s, 50s, and 60s and you know how badly the gov't cramped on the people. It was just in 70s British see they need to give Hong Kong back, so they left the people alone and accidently created the economic paradise (have you wondered why the British didn't do the same in UK?). It surprises me HK ppl want more gov't now when it was the lack of gov't that helped the city prosper.

[@iamthinking2252_]

i thought they tried that, and it was called thatcherism... think it led to the sick man of europe era

[@SLAVESweARE]

LOL! Thank you :) Seeing as I never received a response from this individual, and that I also work alongside 2 people born and raised in Hong Kong who describe HK exactly like this Milton Friedman video does, I would guess that your notion of a failed business is probably closer to the truth...

[@exoxy]

Great video but the ivory workshop was an unfortunate choice :(

[@Trump-ty9nj]

net came from xerox a corporationa nd net was spread by free market!

[@frederickbulsara8141]

is hong kong still a completely free market today?

[@amandapeper5815]

Yes, still free market. no VAT.

[@lagillas]

just 90% free like always.

[@crossroads670]

Not as free but still best in world

[@jw2862]

Sadly not anymore

[@yohaha]

And by the way, the countries that are facing the dilemma you mentioned, by definition has no free market. In a capitalistic and free market society, the government does not face that dilemma, because the government would not have power to do anything about it anyways. The fact that IF the countries face this dilemma, it shows they are NOT free market (western countries have been fascist states since WW2). Your logic is really entertaining.

[@dickiewongtk]

That is why I hate people nowadays call people in emerging markets 'slave labour' 'being exploited'. And the minimum wage. What? Because you hate low skill factory job, so I can'y do it to lift myself out of poverty? Because you hate low salary, so I can't take less money in exchange for a job I need? How dare you?

[@PolKsio]

@laurencepak Why do you say that?

[@pamcollins4334]

Thank you, Mr Friedman. You made me gay awa

[@skm1091]

Do you realize it was a hell of a lot worse when it did have a government, under Siad Barre's Regime? Barre was not a capitalist! In fact he was leader of Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party! Today it is actually a lot better. And besides if big government was the solution wouldn't North Korea be at the top?!

[@psusac]

Yes, and what works for the tiny island of Tiwan will work for the WHOLE WORLD. After all, your personal intuitons about how the economy works apply in exactly the same way at the level of the global economy as they do at the level of your business, right? Friedman was a genius, but even HE didn't see our situation comming. The world is simply too complicated for one economic theory to hold the whole truth. One thing that complicates it is that people use theory to rationalize their behavior

[@yohaha]

Capitalism is the system that allows people, when they pursue their own good, they will be able to empower others and enrich others. In a capitalistic society, the only way someone can succeed is to provide something others need and want. And during this process capitalists add value to other people. You do recognize we no longer have free-market and capitalism in this world? (we have fascism) If you know of a better system, I will be very interested to know.

[@saltysnacky]

You can't "win" in a free market, since people's wants and desires are always changing and thus require that business models also change to keep up.

[@hdn4nd]

What is this so called "winning?" Is winning only possible where markets are constrained or planned? No, there is no such thing as "winning." There is only "doing" - and the liberty to do as one pleases only aids in the positive individual outcomes of such human action.

[@yohaha]

That was just because other economies go down the drain faster than Hong Kong is. The difference is, a lot other countries have way more resource than Hong Kong. Hong Kong has no resource for people to leech on, so when capitalism and free market go down the drain, so goes the Hong Kong prosperity. And Singapore will soon take over the number 1 position thanks to HK people seeking for a nanny state. Mark my words.

[@Forestadash]

Hong kong, Singapur

[@WhereTheCheeseAt]

dayum...they work in sweatshop-like conditions lol

[@Forestadash]

Friedman is not a real free market economist. Mises, Rothbard, Hayek those were real free market economists

[@mikess56]

So this is where American jobs went to

[@kendoWTL]

You are forgetting to apply it in proportion of scale my good man. The Hong Kong poverty level still enjoys a much higher quality of life than its neighboring main land china and other neighboring asianic countries that have restricted economies of scale. Also, I cannot find where you found your data on starving children or number of people living on the streets so I cannot really argue nor confirm that statement until I can find your source.

[@yohaha]

It's not theory... capitalism (private earning, private losses) and free market has been tried over and over and was the only economic that worked and benefited the whole society in its growth, and when it got abandoned all is lost. I am surprised that capitalism and free market helped your country prosper and now you say it doesn't work. Most people who support capitalism and free market KNOW the problems today will come because capitalism was turned into crony capitalism a.k.a fascism.

[@meetKEL]

First, if this thing jamanium is proved to be useful for humanity and harmless to environment, a demand of jamanium would be accessed in community. Then, an automated exploitation tech would be invented by capable research teams without financial constraint. Then, the global cybernated system would be responsible for exploitation and related production according to the demand. I'm not a scientist and engineer, but this is what i think as far as i learn about RBE.

[@steve1739]

Its too bad America's politicians reject this.Communist mainland is foolish to ignore the reason for Hong Kong's prosperity.

[@mercedbread9045]

The same could be said for almost every tier 1 & tier 2 Chinese city today .......

[@Trump-ty9nj]

economic incentives are ignored, and that si why billions suffer!!!!! under communiswm no reason to get outa bed!!! discomfrt is ok u will survivie!! u ned discomfort to produce!

[@Shanshou4]

I agree with free market principles but let's look at Hong Kong. Hong Kong does not have to support a military, Hong Kong has a health care system in which most people pay into it not like America with filthy Mexico and south Americans.

[@harshitmadan6449]

It doesn't have a healthcare system to speak of. A few public hospitals here and there.

[@freudvsmickeymouse]

Yay! Go Hong Kong! One of the world's largest financial centres, with a 210 billion dollar GDP! Putting aside the fact that 1 in 5 people there live in poverty, 1 in 4 children are underfed, and 100,000 people live on the streets; it's a darn good place. Don't you just love free-market capitalism?

[@Forestadash]

Hahaha great argument. Now I know that they are wrong.

[@Maceta444]

isn´t Hong Kong a tax haven? In that case no wonder it´s so rich.

[@raptokvortex]

"Tax haven" often means that the low taxes aren't a burden to business, so it is easier to do business, so you have more and your economy grows.

[@gamania122]

Tax haven... What a beautiful word...

[@jonathanallison785]

instead of 'tax haven', just say 'heaven'

[@yohaha]

Not anymore... looks like you are from Hong Kong and moved to Canada like I did? Nope, Hong Kong's capitalism and free market is dead. And Canada is being a bigger nanny state than US (luckily we still have the resource for people to leech on). This is all coming to an end. The system is so sick it will die. It's a matter of if we are smart enough to go back to something that proves to work (capitalism, free market), or something that did not work (socialism, nanny state).

[@charlesjurgus]

Terry Savage was on WGN yesterday blasting government involvement in economies holding up Cuba as an example. Her illustration was so over-simplified and rank with faulty reasoning that it had the stench of political rhetoric at its worst. To say that there is no place for government to get involved in economic issues because a third world country--which has been besieged, economically, by its most powerful neighbor for the last fifty years--is akin to Milton Friedman's use of Hong Kong as an example of how de-regulation works, kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqLLYa2OiMlnrMU. In Friedman's example, he points at the wealth of Hong Kong as the proof of the triumph of unregulated markets... what he fails to mention is the disparity in wealth, lack of rights and exploitation rife in this micro society and the fact that it was the only free market city/port granting access to the productive might and markets of the whole of China. If it were nothing more than a port it would be fabulously rich because of its situation. With Cuba, Terry pulls a very similar kind of obfuscation. Ignoring the history of the country... threatened by control by such criminal luminaries as Meyer Lansky, the likes of whom offered access to opportunity to a very few Cubans--but outpacing domestic endeavors--as prostitutes, thugs and drug runners. All while undermining and adding to the corruption of the countries government. Until, that is, a bunch of child revolutionaries were compelled to rally and overthrow the government too weak to keep itself from becoming an even more degenerate Island Vegas. These young revolutionaries found themselves immediately in over their heads playing off the two super-powers of the day just trying to keep their feet beneath them and their heads atop their shoulders. Whatever awful mistakes these kid revolutionaries made, it was better than the alternative. And this lone country stood its ground against the Goliath of its day. Not just the US, and the Soviet Union, but the criminal syndicate made powerful by its presence feeding off the greatest economy in the world. What Savage and her ilk willfully ignore is that the rise of great holdings of capital become more and more unwieldy with its own agents--accountants, businessmen, lawyers, etc.--acting out of the desire merely to add bullets to their resumes and salary to their accounts and doing so by serving that money over the interests of the rest of the community. These economic actors pool greater and greater resources of capital into an already bloated horde choking the rest of the economy through lack of wages and salaries. When a wage or salary earner gets that dollar, it goes right back out into the economy as payment to mechanics, carpenters, doctors, to restaurants, vacation spots, electronic stores, etc.,... where it is most often paid out again and spent almost immediately on the same things... when a billionaire gets that dollar, it is vested in already existing companies and properties which may already be overvalued but become even more overvalued as more capital dollars seek to vest in them. When the GOP talks about starting small businesses, what it doesn't mention is the dearth of spending seeking the services of such businesses. No single economic entity can buck this trend towards the over-capitalization of the system... and no group will waste its time consolidating effort to do so--and if they were to try, they couldn't be trusted to do so without oversight. The only entity that is tasked with such responsibilities is the government. The problem is that the mass of wealth and production speak with a single voice when it tries to do so--and it is the voice of self-serving idiocy. In this case, out of the mouth of Terry Savage.

[@holly52ful]

Wow, how prophetic this is??? In reverse!!!

[@PijusONLINE]

Who cares if everyone is better-off? Compare your socialist utopia, that is the Soviet Union, with Hong Kong. I too may not agree with everything that Milton preaches, but let the facts speak for themselves, shall we?

[@topranked5465]

What About capitalist Utopia like Haiti? Funny how you guys never look at the capitalistic countries failing , just the ones that make your point look good. You are an idiot sir

[@thelordphenom9676]

@@topranked5465 Economic freedom index for Haiti: 52.3. Try again socialist, you'll be luckier next time!

[@topranked5465]

@@thelordphenom9676 oh yes, the economic freedom index created by non partisan and non biased right wing Heritage Foundation and right wing Wall Street Journal 🙄

[@thelordphenom9676]

@@topranked5465 "Everything that doesn't agree with me is partisan, deceptive and wrong" Typical socialist.

[@Darthvies]

Perhaps a free market economy does work if the country is not very big. Hong Kong does have a population of under 8 million people. The state would not have many people to boss around..but free market for a country like Britain or America? Nah.

[@yohaha]

Moral motives? LOL. Okay, have fun dreaming politicians are on your side. It's obvious we are from very different realities. And don't worry, most people in your country hold your philosophies, so your way will be the one that gets tested in real life, and you will find out the result of it in this decade (if you haven't found out already of the 14 trillion dollar debt). Good luck, although I know you are wrong, I do sincerely wish you are right.

[@okohiaj]

LOL false. prove it.

[@PowersOfDarkness]

cage homes

[@yohaha]

Not anymore. After 1997 the Hong Kong people think they now can actually affect the government (before it was British colony) so they started to ask gov't to do this and regulate that. The free market in Hong Kong is literally dead. In the past when I was a kid you have illegal immigrants trying to go to HK to work hard and make a good life. Now you have "legal" immigrants who go to HK to leech on the social benefits. Sound familiar to US?

[@Trump-ty9nj]

rent would be 100 a month under capitalism and sex for cash b free and b no divorce or alimony payments or fed :)

[@calebproductions5970]

You can't breathe or shit in the United States without the government regulations. Someone needs to get these Jews out of the government so we can breathe again. It's fucking ridiculous. This video proves that if government stays out of our business we can thrive. Of course that means no money for the bureaucrats

[@yohaha]

Oh, by the way, Hong Kong now actually has a lot more welfare programs, and that is why today's Hong Kong's economy is dying with the rich gets richer and the poor gets poorer, all thanks to people want to take away from those who produce and give to those who don't produce. In the 60s, 70s, 80s there were a lot illegal immigrants risk their lives to go to HK to work hard to earn a good life. Now you have "legal" immigrants going to HK to leech on the benefits. Sound familiar to your country?

[@johnnyq4260]

Dude, you are seriously out of date.

[@mikess56]

Still looks third world to me

[@yohaha]

What's the problem with tariffs? Taxing on consumption is way better than taxing income. And regarding to slavery and imperialism I don't even know what you are freaken talking about when we are talking about economic freedom. Yes there were problems, but because the system was almost a minarchy the public eventually abandoned many bad ideas. You enjoyed the fruit of the economic freedom created and now you bash it... so awesome... that's why your country is going down the drain.

[@psusac]

I have to wonder what the rest of the picture is - Freidman only showed the side of Hong-Kong that supports his thesis. No social system is that simple. I'm all for free-markets, but exploitation does happen - consider the robber barrons of our own history.

[@reklaws52]

I am trying to find out more about actual "free-market" economies. There is a lot of propaganda in the U.S.--if you support any tax raise on the rich, affordable health insurance, you are called a socialist--free-market economics is a cult. I would appreciate information in greater detail on this corporate monopoly.

[@sw.7519]

Das ist kein freundlicher Platz für Kinder.

[@Cleric775]

Qwatch. Du spinst wohl.

[@bhavankarnani4740]

5th worst income inequality outside Africa and getting worse every year (latest CIA GINI data). Least happy population among all first world countries (UN world happiness report). People that are stressed and overworked. 200,000 people living in "cage homes". Yup, the relatively free (but still efficiently regulated) market in action. Without any government regulation at all, it would be even worse.

[@MaximusWolfe]

You're full of shit. The UN is and utterly compromised organization with a plethora of agendas and grifts. Your other source is the CIA. Need I say more? Your ad populum is also transparent and feeble. Where do you think those 200,000 were living prior to those "cage homes?" You pinkos always fall back on this quixotic idea that capitalism only works if people begin as members of the middle class. There are 1.35 billion plus living in China, 200,000 living on the poverty line is nothing shocking or damning.

[@bhavankarnani4740]

Um, the population of China is not 2 billion and 200,000 live in cage homes in Hong Kong. That *is* a significant chunk of their population. Also it doesn't really matter where you get the GINI data from, practically all sources say that income inequality is among the highest in the world in Hong Kong. Even their government acknowledges this. Also you don't need the UN happiness report to know that people in hong kong work long hours and are stressed out. www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1131222/singapore-hong-kong-face-happiness-deficit?page=all

[@MaximusWolfe]

Bhavan Karnani (1.35 billion) Again, let's suppose for the purposes of argument that you are right. So what? Again, if these people had better opportunities elsewhere they would flounce. But instead they remain in a place where they know upward mobility is available through hard work. I'm sure your solution would be to make everyone equally destitute. Problem is that doesn't actually lead to the betterment of lives. It is a proven fact that capitalism has created the highest living standard in history. You can point out social inequality til you are blue in the face. You and yours have yet to offer a superior means of betterment without at the same time, often unwittingly, advocating totalitarian coercion.

[@bhavankarnani4740]

Lol, most of society's resources should be spent on services that benefit the whole society, not just a few rich people. Ever heard of the Nordic model? Happiest countries in the world and highest quality of life.

[@MaximusWolfe]

Bhavan Karnani Again, capitalism created the standard of living that became the envy of the world. Your pinko casuistry will never change that fact.