One of the things that concerns me most about the world we live in today is the way the concept of free markets has become interchangeable with the idea of anything goes. As much as any single thing this frame of thought has contributed to the decline of morality in the way business is done, oddly enough most often seen in those who constantly claim to be filled with integrity.
I believe that the concept of free markets are based on the idea that when markets work, everyone who contributes has a fair chance to earn. And that the dynamic of having as much participation in the markets as possible by competing forces keeps them honest and contributes to the vitality of the markets. Throughout history this idea has been proven to work when markets are in development and are free to grow without interference. But in our world today, there are those who would insist that regulation is the chief culprit that stymies the effectiveness of free markets. Problem is, an honest examination of history proves otherwise.
Almost without fail, when markets thrive, someone will eventually become greedy and start to look for ways to gain a greater share of the markets by creating unfair advantages for themselves. They use their wealth, power and influence to try to shut the door of opportunity on those who would compete with them, and by doing so they become the force that inhibits the natural order of a free market. As this perversion of the markets grow, the markets become less and less free and the result is a market controlled by the ruthless.
The most effective tool to combat this occurring has been responsible regulation overseen by those who have a vested interest in keeping the markets free, and by the ability of those who work for these competing forces to be able to level the field for themselves through collective bargaining. When the people whose labor helps to make the difference between success and failure are no longer able to bargain for a fair wage and instead they are forced to work for wages that will not fairly sustain them, the markets are not free and the offending business is not successful, because ultimately these businesses suck the life out of a community rather than contributing to their vitality. That is why once the vitality is sucked out of a community, the offending business feels it has no choice but to go someplace else and begin the process of sucking the life out of another community somewhere else. In today's world we call that out-sourcing. In the beginning, the new location of these blood sucking businesses welcome them and laud them as progress, but without fail in time they will be seen as a pariah when it is understood that they will pack up and leave as soon as they find someone willing to do the job cheaper and allow them less regulation. They tell us regulation, again is the bad guy, ignoring the fact that without rules, too many simply cannot be counted on to make a long term commitment to the vitality of that community. When America thrived in the past, it was because owners of business felt a need for their own good to make such a commitment to the communities they operated in. They understood that if people could not afford their products, they would not thrive. This was a dynamic of the free market concept that became somewhat obsolete when small and medium sized local businesses began to disappear in the wake of the mega-corporation. Ironically, the people wanted them. They wanted cheaper prices and convenience, somehow not realizing, or not caring that they were contributing to the perversion of the free market system by removing its most important ingredient, competition. And by contributing to the decline of dynamic localized competition, they set the stage for the loss of jobs and their rights to negotiate fair wages and benefits.
My mission is to re-mind older Americans and educate the young to understand what a free market really is, and to change their idea of what makes a business successful. I do not suggest we focus on getting back jobs lost, but that we go forth creating new jobs through innovation and ingenuity with an understanding that we ultimately hold the power to decide how long that business contributes to our standard of living rather than pulling down that quality of life in its bid to continue to grow. I would never argue that those who work hardest should not profit more than those who do not, this is a healthy and important idea. But we must reject those who, once they have used us to enrich themselves, began the process of shutting us out of our ability to also continue to thrive, in the name of greed. I insist that the fundamental foundation of the free market system is the win-win situation.
Frank M. Beaty
I believe that the concept of free markets are based on the idea that when markets work, everyone who contributes has a fair chance to earn. And that the dynamic of having as much participation in the markets as possible by competing forces keeps them honest and contributes to the vitality of the markets. Throughout history this idea has been proven to work when markets are in development and are free to grow without interference. But in our world today, there are those who would insist that regulation is the chief culprit that stymies the effectiveness of free markets. Problem is, an honest examination of history proves otherwise.
Almost without fail, when markets thrive, someone will eventually become greedy and start to look for ways to gain a greater share of the markets by creating unfair advantages for themselves. They use their wealth, power and influence to try to shut the door of opportunity on those who would compete with them, and by doing so they become the force that inhibits the natural order of a free market. As this perversion of the markets grow, the markets become less and less free and the result is a market controlled by the ruthless.
The most effective tool to combat this occurring has been responsible regulation overseen by those who have a vested interest in keeping the markets free, and by the ability of those who work for these competing forces to be able to level the field for themselves through collective bargaining. When the people whose labor helps to make the difference between success and failure are no longer able to bargain for a fair wage and instead they are forced to work for wages that will not fairly sustain them, the markets are not free and the offending business is not successful, because ultimately these businesses suck the life out of a community rather than contributing to their vitality. That is why once the vitality is sucked out of a community, the offending business feels it has no choice but to go someplace else and begin the process of sucking the life out of another community somewhere else. In today's world we call that out-sourcing. In the beginning, the new location of these blood sucking businesses welcome them and laud them as progress, but without fail in time they will be seen as a pariah when it is understood that they will pack up and leave as soon as they find someone willing to do the job cheaper and allow them less regulation. They tell us regulation, again is the bad guy, ignoring the fact that without rules, too many simply cannot be counted on to make a long term commitment to the vitality of that community. When America thrived in the past, it was because owners of business felt a need for their own good to make such a commitment to the communities they operated in. They understood that if people could not afford their products, they would not thrive. This was a dynamic of the free market concept that became somewhat obsolete when small and medium sized local businesses began to disappear in the wake of the mega-corporation. Ironically, the people wanted them. They wanted cheaper prices and convenience, somehow not realizing, or not caring that they were contributing to the perversion of the free market system by removing its most important ingredient, competition. And by contributing to the decline of dynamic localized competition, they set the stage for the loss of jobs and their rights to negotiate fair wages and benefits.
My mission is to re-mind older Americans and educate the young to understand what a free market really is, and to change their idea of what makes a business successful. I do not suggest we focus on getting back jobs lost, but that we go forth creating new jobs through innovation and ingenuity with an understanding that we ultimately hold the power to decide how long that business contributes to our standard of living rather than pulling down that quality of life in its bid to continue to grow. I would never argue that those who work hardest should not profit more than those who do not, this is a healthy and important idea. But we must reject those who, once they have used us to enrich themselves, began the process of shutting us out of our ability to also continue to thrive, in the name of greed. I insist that the fundamental foundation of the free market system is the win-win situation.
Frank M. Beaty
No comments:
Post a Comment