undefined | Better HN

0 pointscoldtea12y ago0 comments

The actual nonsense is the existance of the mythical " real, free-market capitalism", that nobody has ever seen in practice.

The "free market" that does exist is based on subsidies, bailouts, state protection, monopolies, a huge army, bullying, and resource grabbing (and past 300+ years of colonialism).

Heck, the "free market" is even more mythical than the laughable "really existing socialism".

0 comments

kbolino12y ago

The free market does not exist because the government stands in its way. To then go on to chide free market advocates for actions they do not support is disingenuous at best.

Businessmen are not interested in ideology, if they can use the government as a cudgel against their opponents, or a crutch to sustain them in hard times, they will.

Every time the government's power over the economy has been expanded, advocates of the free market have pointed this fact out and been ignored.

You can't break my spine and then blame me for being paralyzed.

coldteaOP12y ago

>The free market does not exist because the government stands in its way

So people should quit talking about it as it existed.

Not to mention that the same could (and WAS) said for communism ("it didn't exist because party bureucrats got in the way").

>You can't break my spine and then blame me for being paralyzed.

No, but I can point out that the unicorn pony you frequently talk about doesn't exist and never did in human history.

kbolino12y ago

At various places and times throughout history, conditions of a largely free market have existed. It is not a "unicorn pony" (isn't that redundant and/or contradictory?). However, such conditions do not exist in most of the world now, and I don't see anywhere praxeologist or myself claimed otherwise.

cdash12y ago

No one broke your spine, it never existed and never will. It is imaginary.

kbolino12y ago

Pretty sure my spine is real. Perhaps you meant to unpack that analogy first?

The "free market" is simply what exists absent interference. It ceases to exist when a single player or group of players asserts force over the others. The purpose of government is to reduce the effectiveness of violence as a strategy.

jbooth12y ago

Not to mention, taking an econ 101 supply and demand graph based on a quote 'widget factory' (actual textbook quote) and applying those ideas about marginal cost to utility economics where you build the grid once and then charge on subscription. Unironically. Earnestly, even.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

0 comments

kbolino12y ago

The free market does not exist because the government stands in its way. To then go on to chide free market advocates for actions they do not support is disingenuous at best.

Businessmen are not interested in ideology, if they can use the government as a cudgel against their opponents, or a crutch to sustain them in hard times, they will.

Every time the government's power over the economy has been expanded, advocates of the free market have pointed this fact out and been ignored.

You can't break my spine and then blame me for being paralyzed.

coldteaOP12y ago

>The free market does not exist because the government stands in its way

So people should quit talking about it as it existed.

Not to mention that the same could (and WAS) said for communism ("it didn't exist because party bureucrats got in the way").

>You can't break my spine and then blame me for being paralyzed.

No, but I can point out that the unicorn pony you frequently talk about doesn't exist and never did in human history.

kbolino12y ago

cdash12y ago

No one broke your spine, it never existed and never will. It is imaginary.

kbolino12y ago

Pretty sure my spine is real. Perhaps you meant to unpack that analogy first?

jbooth12y ago

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse