A capitalist would argue that, but they would probably be wrong, given massive long-running "market failures" in improving the planet and average quality of lif

A capitalist would argue that, but they would probably be wrong, given massive long-running "market failures" in improving the planet and average quality of life on global and local scales despite reasonably free markets. Markets being efficient doesn't imply positive outcomes/externalities. I could definitely see there being trade-offs, like non-market solutions resulting in negatives but still overall improving on those particular axes, but I find it unlikely that markets are the best possible strategy.