I do not see those as opposite states of mind. However, I may not have the best perception of how the general public thinks. The older I get, the more I think

I do not see those as opposite states of mind. However, I may not have the best perception of how the general public thinks. The older I get, the more I think "free market" is a completely incoherent concept that generally gets applied by its advocates to mean "tile the game in favor of me." I view all markets as mostly construction of culture and tradition, and what is "free" requires some conception of "freedom" and for some that means "freedom for me to exploit you" and for others it means "no laws except the special laws and police, for which I won't bother justifying why they are needed other than it feels right."