1) There are no 'unregulated free markets' 2) Nobody -ever- has said that an 'unregulated free market produces a level playing field and a meritocracy' The fa

1) There are no 'unregulated free markets' 2) Nobody -ever- has said that an 'unregulated free market produces a level playing field and a meritocracy' The facts are that a regulated and controlled market with freedom of economic action produces the best outcomes for a population as a whole, when measured in life expectancy, social mobility and and even environmental cleanliness. Every other system that has been tried produces far worse outcomes across all these measures. There's a persistent adolescent thought pattern running these days which says something like 'free market? Huh? Where's my lamborghini? I got nuthin' but student debt and no job' This kind of thinking should be avoided in order to make progress on the topic.