April 25, 2008...11:21 pm
The limited free market
Hot Air complimented McCain on his free market view with respect to Ethanol:
It’s an essentially agnostic point of view on ethanol itself, but it’s the proper conservative response. If ethanol can succeed in a level marketplace, then it should continue. If not — and there are plenty of reasons to suspect it won’t — then McCain doesn’t want the government intervening to keep it afloat.
Is the market really what should be deciding? Yes? Well where is my drug market? Or my prostitution market? If there is a demand, and there is an offer, shouldn’t the proper conservative response be to just let the market forces play it out?
I’m not sure ethanol is the right solution. But I do no that sometimes the market isn’t the best judge of what should or should not happen. Sometimes we need bold initiatives that push the market in one direction or another. So for example, we fund NASA. We are not waiting on the market to push boundaries, we are funding that ourselves. Same for other technologies. Sometimes you just can’t wait idle and let the market play itself out. And sometimes you interfere (like in prostitution) because there is more at stake than demand and offer.
Update: it didn’t take very long. From Crooksandliars.com, here is my answer!
1 Comment
April 26, 2008 at 12:33 pm
” If there is a demand, and there is an offer, shouldn’t the proper conservative response be to just let the market forces play it out?”
Thats the proper libertarian response. Conservtives get hung up on things like consequences and morals.
” Well where is my drug market? Or my prostitution market? ”
They are all around you. They’re called black markets because they are illegal.
“But I do no that sometimes the market isn’t the best judge of what should or should not happen”
Markets are amoral. They, in no sense, can be judges of right or wrong, they can just set demand and supply.
“So for example, we fund NASA. We are not waiting on the market to push boundaries, we are funding that ourselves.”
This is a bait and switch. There are some times that only the economy of a country can support, like space travel in the 60’s. Or a standing army.
“And sometimes you interfere (like in prostitution) because there is more at stake than demand and offer.”
That, believe it or not, is a conservative principle you just espouse. I hope you don’t spontaneously combust!
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