And the Woozle sez:

You can't have a market without regulation. Discuss.

From the Plus. You're a brave man, Mr. Hypertwin, even with the Yapadoodle blocked.

My view:

• What is typically called "the free market" is, in fact, an exceptional, special, and limited case.
• The evidence is that even in so-called free-market economies, huge amounts of transactions occur in other-than-free-market contexts. Government sector. Monopoly and cartel transactions. Very highly regulated or constrained markets. Markets in which legislated advantage is afforded a particular player. Markets in which a small cadre have gamed circumstances strongly to their advantage.
• That the "free market" itself is no panacea. It has very little future awareness and, as with evolution, is largely undirected. Even activities which are plainly highly deleterious or suicidal in the long run are pursued by "the market".
• That I'm not sure of any single preferred solution.

What Adam Smith's idealized market does provide is an ability for individual actors (firms, merchants, producers, consumers) to meet as equals. And if the parties aren't meeting as at least nominal equals, what you've got is no free market.

And Smith writes at great length over the regulatory environment which is required. As a counterexample: Calivinball.

@woozle@hey.iseeamess.com
#markets
#regulation
#FreeMarket