Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Milton Friedman makes an important observation about state legislatures, members of Congress, government budgets, and spending. What happens when every spending request comes with an emotional appeal? When asking "where will the money come from?" gets reframed as "why do you want to hurt vulnerable people?"
How do you prioritize when every program gets defended this way? When every advocate treats their cause as the obvious exception? When raising concerns about overall spending gets met with accusations of hard-heartedness?
The mechanics of this dynamic—where each individual request seems reasonable but the cumulative effect is unsustainable—rarely get discussed. The emotional appeal crowds out the budgetary reality.
Milton Friedman makes an important observation about state legislatures, members of Congress, government budgets, and spending. What happens when every spending request comes with an emotional appeal? When asking "where will the money come from?" gets reframed as "why do you want to hurt vulnerable people?"
How do you prioritize when every program gets defended this way? When every advocate treats their cause as the obvious exception? When raising concerns about overall spending gets met with accusations of hard-heartedness?
The mechanics of this dynamic—where each individual request seems reasonable but the cumulative effect is unsustainable—rarely get discussed. The emotional appeal crowds out the budgetary reality.
