Market forces work with rational actors, assuming the difference between the rational act and the irrational act are large enough. Discrimination is inherently

Market forces work with rational actors, assuming the difference between the rational act and the irrational act are large enough. Discrimination is inherently irrational, but it's pernicious because the effects on the company aren't nearly as big as the effects on the discriminated person. And in some cases, discrimination may be beneficial to the bottom line if every company does it, like redlining in the 1960's or high interest rates for black people in the 2000's. As to why it's a problem? Because we want everyone to get a fair deal. If you need an argument beyond the moral one, or the one about what sort of country do you want to live in, how about because economic growth at the macro level tends to increase when barriers to employment, capital and other resources are decreased. Since we know that discrimination is irrational, laws aimed at preventing discrimination as a barrier to employment and capital serve to increase economic prosperity at the cost of reducing what you correctly characterise as stupid behavior.