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Here's the thing. Economic transactions can have externalities -- costs to someone not a party to the transaction that are not reflected in the cost of the good
by cwyers 8y ago
Here's the thing. Economic transactions can have externalities -- costs to someone not a party to the transaction that are not reflected in the cost of the good or service in the transaction. The "sharing economy" has loads of externalities. It's like saying, if you don't like the bonfire, don't participate to it, when you've set the fire downwind of someone and there's smoke blowing in their tent.
- neokantian 8y agoYeah, it is always possible to discover new externalities, if you want to. If you sleep with that girl, I cannot do that at the same time. So, that is also an externality. Since it affects what I can do, I have the right to stick my nose into that business, no?
- cwyers 8y agoThat's not an externality. And honestly, your chosen example is rather unpleasant. An externality is something like "cigarettes produce smoke that contains a lot of carcinogens, and therefore cigarette smoking can contribute to the poor health of people who are nearby even if they do not choose to smoke themselves."
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- thomasfortes 8y agoIgnoring the terrible taste of your argument for the sake of keeping it civil... Do you really think that everyone should simply bend to the externalities that you generate? You really think that you could drop toxic waste on a river that goes through your property and no one can complain when the river dies because you are more important that the victims of your externalities? Because it is a terrible argument that does not seem to have any basis on how the real world operates.
- bostik 8y agoTechnically you can, but the practice is called "gang rape" and is rightly frowned upon. I am choosing to make an even more tasteless point than what you did. It's easy to be a capitalist when you are independently wealthy.
- antidesitter 8y agoEvery industry has externalities, both positive and negative. Your comment is basically vacuous.
- nnnnnande 8y agoYes, so why not do something about the negative ones?
- cwyers 8y agoYes, every industry has externalities. They exist. They're basic Econ 101 stuff. Which is why it's overly simplistic to say "nobody else should interfere in a transaction between two people." There's externalities, there's market failure, there's the tragedy of the commons. A belief in markets ought to be paired with an understanding of them.