Dr. Anne Bradley on Free Markets and Human Progress

The Phil Smith Center for Free-Enterprise welcomed Economist Anne Bradley to Professor Garrison’s Principles of Macroeconomics course to speak about the advancement of economic and human flourishing. Dr. Bradley’s talk started with the simple yet impactful example of insulin. Discovered just over 100 years ago, usage of the insulin hormone has contributed to an exponential improvement in the quality of life of diabetes patients, added years to life expectancy, and incited multiple medical breakthroughs in the years following its discovery. Could surgeon Frederick Banting and medical student Charles Best have predicted just how groundbreaking their research would be? Likely not. However, the underpinnings of their contribution are far from a once in a lifetime accident. “People respond to incentives and act in their own self-interest”, Bradley postulated. “It is thanks to their innovation that my son can live a happy and healthy life”, she continued. Bradley pointed out that the United Staes has had one thousand years of economic growth in the span of a century. The culprit? Allowing individuals to find their comparative advantage, fine-tune their skills, and pursue their goals. Students were no doubt able to hit two birds with one stone given that many of the topics that Dr. Bradley covered aligned perfectly with previous class lectures.

“Ordinary people and ordinary things are just waiting to become extraordinary. Our job as economists is to remove barriers to their potential. I’m over the moon that my students got to hear Dr. Bradley as her research is a supreme example of economics is all about”, said Professor Garrison. Student engagement was quite high, with questions ranging from current economic policy to an economist’s view on regulation of social media. College of Business Owls certainly got the chance to strengthen their knowledge of policy and economic policy thanks to Dr. Bradley’s engaging lecture.

Dr. Bradley is also the vice president of the fund for American studies (TFAS), a non-profit organization educational organization whose goal is to advance the ideas of individual liberty, personal responsibility, and economic freedom. TFAS provides student business centered internships based in Washington DC during Summer and Fall semesters. The Phil Smith Center for Free-Enterprise seeks to invite speakers and organize events that contribute to public knowledge of the advantages of free-market policy.

For more information regarding on TFAS and future Phil Smith Center events, please contact center director Andrew Garrison at agarrison2018@fau.edu.

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