tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10968338.post114910755637990110..comments2023-08-11T09:56:34.039+01:00Comments on timrollpickering: Is the "free market" always right?Tim Roll-Pickeringhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12589024696145675963noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10968338.post-1149256893557738622006-06-02T15:01:00.000+01:002006-06-02T15:01:00.000+01:00This is not a case of consumers being denied choic...This is not a case of consumers being denied choice, it is a case of one alternative being overwhelmingly better to another.<BR/><BR/>Choice and diversity are not the same thing. In this instance people have chosen lower prices over variety. That might not be your preference but it is a preference people have expressed through their buying decisions.<BR/><BR/>I am sure some people mourned the passing of the hand-built automobile when Henry Ford launched the model T. However, Ford did not destroy choice, he opened up a new choice to millions of people (whether to buy a car they could not previously afford).<BR/><BR/>By choosing lower priced books people have increased their real income which they can spend on entirely new products. You would not have such a book collection were it not the "identikit" approach adopted with the invention of the printing press. Economic growth, often by attaining economies of scale, has increased personal disposable incomes and with it, our ability to express an individual identity.<BR/><BR/>Government is not a friend to choice or diversity. Regulation is a regressive tax which shuts out smaller players. There is a clear positive relationship between the size of government and the average size of firms. This does not enhance choice because overrides the preferences people have expressed in the market.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10968338.post-1149152316114543322006-06-01T09:58:00.000+01:002006-06-01T09:58:00.000+01:00Gosh, I can't believe it! You actually agree with ...Gosh, I can't believe it! You actually agree with me on small businesses. :)<BR/>At least now you will have an idea why I dislike an unfettered free market!<BR/>I also recently blogged on my local bookshop in a similar vein!<BR/><BR/>http://paulburgin.blogspot.com/2006/05/in-praise-of-local-bookshops.htmlPaul Burginhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06718135185726733792noreply@blogger.com