And in reality, there is always an "unless" caveat:

- Farming subsidies - auto bailouts - Bank bailouts - No bid defense contracts

I don't understand why discussions on HN always go back to speaking in terms of economic absolutes. Those do not exist in reality, because the world is made of numerous complex, interdependent relationships between different economic entities.

Economics is not a science in which you can measure out indicators into petri dishes and observe them in a controlled environment. Quoting Milton Friedman like scripture simply belies a glaring misunderstanding of how the world works.