It is amazing to hear people talk about the recent economic problems as evidence that free markets don't work. worse, they seem to act as if it's OBVIOUS that free markets are terribly flawed.
how about some context?
One hundred years ago life expectancy in the US was 47, 14% of homes had a bathtub, and 8% of homes had a phone. The average wage was $.22 per hour, but a 3-minute phone call from Denver to New York was $11.00. Six percent of the population had graduated from high school, and the population of Las Vegas was 30. it seems to me that free markets have been very good to this country.
but the stock market dips, and people conclude that the system is irredeemable. that's pretty short-sighted.
