4 ms·

I don't really buy that consumer protection and antitrust regulations actually result in a better free market. I think the market is better off doing it's thing

I don't really buy that consumer protection and antitrust regulations actually result in a better free market. I think the market is better off doing it's thing rather than a bunch of politicians trying to make it more efficient.

pixl97 5y ago
Well then, hopefully you dont want IP laws either.
- ggff67 5y ago
  The funny thing is IP laws are by definition monopolies protected by government. Every one of the big tech "quasi-monopolies" are sitting on a mountain of it.
  - eru 5y ago
    Be careful, IP is a hodgepodge of things, like copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. To pick one: trade secrets are not a monopoly. If you figure out the secret ingredient in Coca Cola (by legal means), you are free to use that knowledge and even publish it. Similarly, I have my reservations about whether patents are a good idea; but I don't mind trademarks nearly as much.
bee_rider 5y ago
What do you mean by "better free market?" Are you using terms like "efficient" and "free market" in their technical sense or are you just saying that you don't like regulations? Definitionally regulations are a divergence from an ideal free market. Provably, under some conditions (which don't exist in the real world) a market will converge to some definition of efficiency. Practically, no politician cares about this. Politicians aren't trying to make the market more efficient with regulations -- good politicians are trying to protect their constituents, bad ones are mostly trying to protect their donors.
p1necone 5y ago
Do you want a single megacorp ruling the world? Because this is how you get a single megacorp ruling the world.
- kylebyproxy 5y ago
  Depends. Is it a worker cooperative that employs everyone?
- eru 5y ago
  Eh, not really. Conglomerates have been on the decline in the last few decades.
eru 5y ago
That might be true, but wouldn't matter in a legal sense, if there are anti-trust laws on the book.

pixl97 5y ago

Well then, hopefully you dont want IP laws either.

ggff67 5y ago
The funny thing is IP laws are by definition monopolies protected by government. Every one of the big tech "quasi-monopolies" are sitting on a mountain of it.
- eru 5y ago
  Be careful, IP is a hodgepodge of things, like copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets. To pick one: trade secrets are not a monopoly. If you figure out the secret ingredient in Coca Cola (by legal means), you are free to use that knowledge and even publish it. Similarly, I have my reservations about whether patents are a good idea; but I don't mind trademarks nearly as much.

bee_rider 5y ago

What do you mean by "better free market?" Are you using terms like "efficient" and "free market" in their technical sense or are you just saying that you don't like regulations? Definitionally regulations are a divergence from an ideal free market. Provably, under some conditions (which don't exist in the real world) a market will converge to some definition of efficiency. Practically, no politician cares about this. Politicians aren't trying to make the market more efficient with regulations -- good politicians are trying to protect their constituents, bad ones are mostly trying to protect their donors.

p1necone 5y ago

Do you want a single megacorp ruling the world? Because this is how you get a single megacorp ruling the world.

kylebyproxy 5y ago
Depends. Is it a worker cooperative that employs everyone?
eru 5y ago
Eh, not really. Conglomerates have been on the decline in the last few decades.

eru 5y ago

That might be true, but wouldn't matter in a legal sense, if there are anti-trust laws on the book.