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Regulation destroys free markets in 4 distinct phases:
CONSOLIDATION - The regulators consolidate their power by making
regulations that are popular. Sometimes they make regulations that
the free market is already doing and then take credit for them.
They use input from the biggest industry players to create
regulations that the big firms are already doing. So the big firms
are barely inconvenienced by the regulations, but the small firms
have large compliance expenses. The goal here is to consolidate
power and give the bigger firms an advantage.
BULLYING - After power is consolidated, the regulators start
playing favorites. They decide who the winners and losers are in
the regulated industry. They start making regulations that are
inconvenient and annoying, but they are powerful enough to silence
dissent now. Free market innovations that do not please the
regulators are squelched. Operating outside of the regulation is
not allowed.
MONOPOLIZATION - The regulated industry loses competitors and
only a few big firms that have access to the government are allowed
to survive. All of the smaller firms are driven out. Regulators can
now shut down any firm and have absolute power. Barriers to entry
are created to exclude new competition.
NATIONALIZATION - The government now formally or informally
combines with the few remaining industry firms. The industry
leaders are just puppets now, the government can exert control from
behind the scenes whenever they wish. The free market structure of
the industry has been wiped out.
It’s important to remember that regulation and law are
different. Laws are passed by congress, which is elected. Ideally,
laws are debated publicly and apply to everyone equally.
Regulations are created by bureaucrats who are not elected and
usually cannot be fired. This eliminates the accountability and
transparency of the regulatory process.
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Secretariat415:
Regulation destroys free markets in 4 distinct phases:
While I do agree in principle and support a free market, the
thing is, laws and regulations are currently not passed in a
vacuum. While I personally am against “all kinds of regulation”
on a general level, I still see e.g. regulating to guarantee net
neutrality as a good thing. This is because there already
are laws in place that give existing companies too much
power over society. The free market has already been destroyed.
This is a global problem, so I’m not talking about the US
specifically. If no monopolies existed, the situation would be
different. But since we already have laws that guarantee strong
positions for internet access providers, it makes sense to regulate
what these companies are allowed to do. At least for as long as the
laws guaranteeing their positions are in place.
Being categorically against all regulation doesn’t make sense
if one at the same time wants to keep already existing laws and
regulations in place. That would just mean one supports the status
quo and opposes change, which, by the way, is what the word
“conservative” usually means.
On a lighter note, I would like to quote a song by Dob
Dylan.
Now, I’m liberal, but to a degree
I want everybody to be free
But if you think that I’ll let Barry Goldwater
Move in next door and marry my daughter
You must think I’m crazy!
I wouldn’t let him do it for all the farms in Cuba
Bob Dylan
(From "I shall be free No. 10)
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I don’t think we need this debate on free market ideology.
We’ve had it before, several times. By all means debate it, and
link to that from here, but we don’t need yet another topic for
it IMO.
I suggest instead we use this topic to looking into what Tim is
talking about specify wrt regulation, or specific proposals being
made to regulate Google et al, maybe even GDPR (though I think that
deserves is own topic) but debating ‘free markets’ belongs
elsewhere really. Its more ideology that debate.
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I don’t think we need this debate on free market ideology. We’ve
had it before, several times. By all means debate it, and link to
that from here, but we don’t need yet another topic for it IMO.
I suggest instead we use this topic to looking into what Tim is
talking about specify wrt regulation, or specific proposals being
made to regulate Google et al, maybe even GDPR (though I think that
deserves is own topic) but debating ‘free markets’ belongs
elsewhere really. Its more ideology that debate.
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