[MD] Northrop and the failure of neo-conservative free market economics

[craigerb at comcast.net]

[Arlo] 
> the "market" has no bones about the buying and 
> selling of human slaves 

  Actually, a voluntary market is the only kind of economic system 
in which a slave trade cannot exist, because (surprise!) slaves 
don’t volunteer. 



[Arlo] 

> The term "free market" is just political bullcrap…"Free market" is 
> a strawman. 
Quite the opposite.   Defining “free market” only as an extreme 
or perfect system is trying to create a strawman.   
Economic systems can be seen along a spectrum from free market economies 
to command economies (fascism, socialism, communism). 
Free speech exists along a spectrum opposite thought control. 
Democracy exists along a spectrum opposite totalitarianism. 
Literal meaning exists along a spectrum opposite metaphorical meaning. 
Failing to see this, results in bad political philosophy or 
bad philosophy of language.   

[Krimel] 
> It is clearly the role of government to establish such rules in-so- 
> far as they reflect the will of the people. 



It is clearly your idea of the role of government, but not the best role. 
Government should allow for voluntary ecomomic transactions, worker-controlled 
economies, communes, etc., the will of the people be damned. 






[Krimel] 
> Is any degree of "voluntary" sufficient to qualify a transaction as 
> "moral"? 



  Generally, voluntariness is not SUFFICIENT for an economic transaction to be moral, but it is NECESSARY. 



Craig