This series, (I didn’t think it was going to be one), could also be called, “Killing Your Sacred Cows with a Single Stroke”.

Today’s target:

“The Free Market”

I can’t type that phrase without quotation marks because “The Free Market” has never existed.

Never.

It’s a theoretical/ hypothetical construct that pundits and politicians use to convince people to vote against their own interests.

There is no such animal. Never was.

As a theory/ hypothesis, it’s clean and nearly convincing – that’s because it leaves out the reality of human affairs.

A “Free Market” system would only work if, and only if everyone had free and open access to all the information.

And that can’t happen in reality. There’s just too much data.

More than that, it has never happened in reality because people, business entities, and governments have never allowed the free flow of information. That’s just history.

Without free access to information, consumers can not make rational decisions about how to vote with their dollar.  And the whole argument of “the Free Market” hinges upon consumers being able to make a rational decision.

And, has everyone forgotten about incentives?

If the main goal of any company is to make a profit, then it becomes an incentive to that company to hide any information that would harm that ability. And to cut whatever corners are necessary to make that profit happen.

How do we know this? Like I said:

Just. Fucking. History.

Take some time to check it out. You’ll be enraged, aghast, maybe even a little afraid.

But if you’ve grown up in the Western World, you sure as shit won’t be surprised.

And another thing: human beings are not completely rational animals. We can use reason, but it’s clear, from observation of our behavior, that we often default to emotional responses. So, any hypothesis that counts on us being rational actors is falling on its face and eating the gravel off the track, before the starting pistol even fires.

So, people who advocate for the free market ether:

A) Haven’t thought about the realities of human interaction.

– or –

B) Are the very people who would limit your access to information because it suits their purposes.

There, that about covers it.

Until next time…