We Will Miss Milton Friedman

Justin Norton informs us that Milton Friedman died today at age 94. Mark Thoma calls this a sad day. Kash writes:

Whether they agree or disagree with Friedman’s economic prescriptions, I think that nearly every economist in the world would acknowledge that he was a giant in the field. Friedman’s own work – as well as the voluminous work done as a direct reaction to his work – played a huge role in shaping the field of economics, and in changing our understanding of the powers and limitations of economic policy-making.

As Justin Norton notes:

Friedman married Rose Director in 1938. They had two children, Janet and David, and Rose was co-author of some of his books.

I did have the incredible pleasure of meeting Rose and Milton Friedman as well as later having dinner with their very smart son, David, who insisted he never had any formal training in economics. Our thoughts go out to David, Janet, and Rose for the loss of one of the great ones.

Update: Brad DeLong will likely miss Dr. Friedman’s integrity:

There’s a story that at lunch at the White House in 2002 he told George W. Bush exactly what he thought about Bush’s unpaid-for tax cuts. We will miss him.