- #36
Dale
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I agree with you on this point. This is essentially why the Libertarian ideal of freedom is not the same as anarchy. There must be some mechanism for protecting individuals and groups from injury and fraud of other individuals and groups.CaptainQuasar said:Yeah, but the point is that gangs and mafias definitely murder and plunder at will. There isn't any innate mechanism in markets or capitalism that promotes and protects the public good, things like preventing encroachment on rights is something that has to be forced on a capitalist system from the outside or the players in it will willingly and unhesitatingly disregard those things.
A group of individuals, whether it be a gang or mafia or corporation or government, is no more or less moral and honorable than the individuals that compose the group. I think that Economist may be objecting to an all too common characterization of corporations as inherently malicious and the worse characterization of profit as inherently immoral. I have a fairly optimistic world-view so I tend to think most individuals are basically good until they demonstrate otherwise, and therefore most groups of individuals are also basically good.