Re: Free Market Anti-Statism
- From: "Rod Speed" <rod.speed.aaa@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 5 Dec 2008 06:50:54 +1100
radav <radav@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
FREE MARKET ANTI-STATISM
A free market (sometimes referred to as free trade) has not been adequately delineated.
Yes it has.
It means much more than lower tariffs or less protectionism
between nation states. In essence, it means that buyers
and sellers, exchangers of goods and services, can proceed
without intervention or hindrance from any outside party.
It applies to economic activities of individuals, businesses, and
organizations both within and between national boundaries.
Correct except that there are always some restrictions, most
obviously with illegal drugs and often with military equipment etc.
In the way you define it, there is no free market at all.
IN PRAISE OF THE FREE MARKET
The free market is the wonder of the world. Millions of transactions
for products; goods, merchandise, commodities; take place continuously
from across the street to across the continents. These are peaceful,
voluntary exchanges, usually through the medium of money, in which
there is a perceived mutual benefit. There is an old cliche which is worth
considering, that "where goods do not cross boundaries armies will."
That last is way past its useby date now. And even when there is no true
free market even in the sense I defined it, there are plenty of examples
where plenty of areas have come to their senses on armys now, most
obviously with the EU. North America did that a century quicker.
In the long history of mankind, what has clearly distinguished
the human from the animal is trading, exchanging, or buying
and selling a variety of merchandise.
An even better distinction is being able to build on what
has been done before, something few animals can manage.
The development of markets has mirrored the progress from barbarism to civilization.
But doesnt necessarily have much to do with civilisation.
Its hard to claim that the imposition of the opium trade on china by britain had much to do with civilisation.
UNDERMINING THE FREE MARKET
Both on a national and local level, there are many ways in which
legislation interferes with the markets. Following is a list of most
(but not necessarily all) political intervention in commerce or trade.
taxation
tariffs
quotas
subsidies
embargoes
licenses
patents and
currency manipulation.
FREE MARKET OR THE STATE
The state was born in force, plunder, and exploitation. It may
be defined as an attempt by a cabal to establish a monopoly
of coercion and retribution over a specific geographical area.
Thats a very crude definition and isnt relevant to today either.
Once established, its most essential function is the use of
the political means rather than the economic means by which
some are enabled to obtain the wealth produced by others.
It cannot be denied that there are degrees of deviation from free
market principles. More enlightened states have allowed some
autonomy to the "body economic." But even the least interventionist
states exhibit a mere caricature of free trade or free markets.
For very good reasons.
THE BEDROCK OF STATISM
Take away all the methods of undermining the markets such as
taxation, tariffs, subsidies, licenses, patents, etc., and there are
still two major impediments to their efficient operation. They are
LAND MONOPOLY
MONEY MONOPOLY
There is no such 'monopoly'
Historically, land-grabbing and the bestowal of land titles is
coextensive with the growth of state power. Favoritism, corruption,
and fraud are the invariable concomitants of property in land.
And then the real world moved on, just like it always does.
But "ground rent seeking" which represents the actual
or anticipated (speculative) yield from ownership of
land works counter to the operation of free markets.
Too bad. It aint some saintly ideal.
The landowner can, and often does, get rich in his sleep.
Hardly ever anymore. They just do quite well now that we choose to tax those individuals.
He is rewarded for the unproductive effort of holding,
Its nothing like unproductive if he rents to those who need somewhere to work or live etc.
which may be for decades.
Few do that for long now that all countrys tax land in some way or other.
The seller of goods, merchandise, commodities (i.e wealth) must find
customers fairly promptly or end up with losses and sometimes bankruptcy.
For details of the process see the link-POLITICAL ECONOMY PRIMER-below.
There is no such link below, and it wouldnt be worth bothering with anyway even if there was.
Despite the paeans to "free enterprise" and "free trade", the state system
of land tenure and the state imposed money monopoly inexorably leads to
increased statism. The state and the free market are irreconcilable.
Like that or lump it.
LINKS
There are no links.
Champions of Liberty
Political Economy Primer
Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace
.
- References:
- Free Market Anti-Statism
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- Free Market Anti-Statism
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