Although rarely understood by the masses, the free-market system is perhaps the most important discovery of mankind – especially so if allowed to function in an appropriately-good law and order nation.
In their book The Poverty of Nations –- A Sustainable Solution, authors Wayne Gruden and Barry Asmus summarize the free-market system as follows:
The four necessary foundations for a free-market system: 1. Private ownership of property with easy legally-documented ownership; 2. The rule of law; 3. A stable currency: and 4. Low taxes.
Furthermore, they discuss the seven key components in the working of a free-market system:
1. Decentralized decision-making (no one decides what is to be made);
2. Specialization and trade by which people multiply their productivity;
3. The signaling system of the market, which indicates continually the changing of supply and demand;
4. Prices as the language of the signaling system;
5. Profit and losses as the green light and red light that signal success or failure for businesses;
6. Competition and voluntary cooperation as the interpersonal dimension that leads to continual improvement;
7. And the risk taking of entrepreneurs who invest and drive innovation.
That, is how a free-market system works. With no central director or planner, it still enables vast amounts of wealth to be created, and benefits to be widely distributed in every nation where it is allowed to function. No other system encourages everyone to compete and cooperate, and gives people such economic freedom to choose and produce and enjoy so much prosperity.
Why isn’t anyone effectively defending the functions of this marvelous, free-market, competitive, free-enterprise, capitalistic system?
It seems the Democrats, the Progressives, and the leftist media are relentless in their promotion of de facto Marxist/Fabian-Socialist ideological functions.
Our kids are apparently being indoctrinated in high school and college on the merits of the so-called “Progressive” (leftist) agenda –- and of the evil of for-profit businesses. They are taught that equality-of-result is the appropriate goal versus America’s traditional equality-of-opportunity. Non-profit companies are idealized even though they must earn or solicit a surplus, i.e., a nontaxable profit to prosper and survive.
In fact, the development of the American-Way -– the free-market, competitive, constitutional, capitalistic system– has provided more prosperity, for the greatest number, than any alternative system in any country of significance in the world.
Furthermore, many failing, former communistic/socialistic nations have abandoned their allegiance to de facto Marxist/Fabian-Socialist ideologies -– and have taken up an American-style, free-market system. Nations that continue to cling to their Marxist ideology are continuing to fail in a hopeless effort to salvage their obsolete, out-of-date, quasi-communist system.
Economist the world over recognize that the wealth of a nation is dependent upon the growing productivity of its people –- in the production of goods and services that compete successfully in the international arena. Successfully meeting the needs, wants and expectations of customers and clients in the competitive marketplace should be the goal of every nation. Governments should foster a free-market environment in which these economic goals and the prosperity of its people can be achieved.
Unfortunately, our children -– and the public in general –- are continuously bombarded with anti-business, anti-Wall Street, anti-bank, and anti-profit propaganda and envy. The recent Democrat Party Debate is a good example of this trend.
Defenders of the American-Way appeared to be few and far between in the public arena. This must change if we are to defeat the entitlement society now being promulgated by Obama, Hillary, Bernie Sanders and the Democrat Party.
To overcome poverty in a competitive world, a nation must have a growing GDP; a free-market economy; private ownership of property; a quick, easy process to gain binding ownership of property; a stable currency; low tax rates; and an annually improving Index of Economic Freedom.
Nobel Laureate Dr. Milton Friedman says:
There are only two ways of coordinating the economic activities of millions. One is central direction involving the use of coercion – the technique of the army and of the modern totalitarian state. The other is voluntary cooperation of individual – the technique of the marketplace.
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