View Single Post
Old 09-06-2008, 10:05 AM   #8
peter12
Franchise Player
 
peter12's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Exp:
Default

Strict libertarian. The individual is the be all and end all for morality within a society. To that end, individuals should be able to pursue their own ends, free from government control, this applies both to the economic and social spheres.

Markets are the best way of doing almost anything. Certainly they require a legal framework enforced by government. Governments are good at doing things in regard to protecting the lives of their citizens. Jammies' example is a false one, in my opinion. The privatization or borroughization of fire departments occurred at an early stage in the development of capitalism, it now seems obvious that emergency services should be centralized.

Proponents of government intervention often operate under the assumption that government is benevolent and capable of making better decisions than individuals operating in a market. This is false. Governments have flawed incentives, due to the need for re-election and the influence of anti-democratic lobbyists. Often governments intervene at the behest of these factors instead of the individuals living within the society. A good example is the supply managements of poultry and dairy products in Canada. This system wastes a huge amount of poultry and milk that the market would be able to sell.

In social matters, do what you want as long as it doesn't hurt me. Some measures of indirect harm must be further examined and explored to develop the framework even further. Such as, the indirect harm caused by polluting companies.
peter12 is offline   Reply With Quote