Government's Failure at Business

[OnePercenter]

How come my newsman and gas station refuse to even consider my offer of ten percent less than they are asking? I told them about the free trade thing and they laughed at me.

dear if enough people stop buying until price goes down 10% you'll have plenty of free trade! Do you understand now?

The price of oil and gasoline are fully controlled by the commodities market. It's a fixed market where sales have nothing to do with the price.

 

[ShackledNation]

An example of monopoly power is Exxon.

interesting that when a liberal is asked to show how capitalism leads to monopoly he picks Exxon not knowing that it is highly controlled by liberal govt such that new competition is harshly restricted. For example we have had no new refineries in about 30 years!!

We don't need any new refineries, if we did we'd have shortages.

No, if we did the supply of oil would be greater and the price of oil would reflect that. Oil would be cheaper than it otherwise would have been.

Do we "need" refineries? I guess not, no more than we "need" faster computers or we "need" most products. But need has nothing to do with the equation. Its about supply and demand--and whatever interferes with that.

 

[OnePercenter]

An example of monopoly power is Exxon.

interesting that when a liberal is asked to show how capitalism leads to monopoly he picks Exxon not knowing that it is highly controlled by liberal govt such that new competition is harshly restricted. For example we have had no new refineries in about 30 years!!

We don't need any new refineries, if we did we'd have shortages.

No, if we did the supply of oil would be greater and the price of oil would reflect that. Oil would be cheaper than it otherwise would have been.

Do we "need" refineries? I guess not, no more than we "need" faster computers or we "need" most products. But need has nothing to do with the equation. Its about supply and demand--and whatever interferes with that.

Oil and gasoline prices are set on the commodities market. Supply and demand have nothing to do with commodities market prices.

 

[regent]

How come my newsman and gas station refuse to even consider my offer of ten percent less than they are asking? I told them about the free trade thing and they laughed at me.

dear if enough people stop buying until price goes down 10% you'll have plenty of free trade! Do you understand now?

Well, I took your advice Eddie and stopped buying gas, now I can't get to work
Tell me again about that free market thing and how it works, and maybe throw in that bit how the free market is like Utopia.
My wife is furious.

 

[regent]

How come my newsman and gas station refuse to even consider my offer of ten percent less than they are asking? I told them about the free trade thing and they laughed at me.

dear if enough people stop buying until price goes down 10% you'll have plenty of free trade! Do you understand now?

Eddie, I need help, I quit buying gas and newspapers and now I can't get to work. Maybe, it would help if you told me again about how free trade is like Utopia and we'll all have plenty when free trade kicks in. My wife is furious. and I wonder if alimony comes under that free trade thing?

 

[regent]

How come my newsman and gas station refuse to even consider my offer of ten percent less than they are asking? I told them about the free trade thing and they laughed at me.

dear if enough people stop buying until price goes down 10% you'll have plenty of free trade! Do you understand now?

Eddie, I need help. I quit buying gas and newspapers like you said, and now I can't get to work. Maybe you should tell us again how that free trade thing is like Utopia. My wife is furious and I'm wondering if alimony comes under free trade?

 

[Dad2three]

dear, no one ever said America had a perfectly free market. In Econ 101 they teach that all economies are mixed. So, now do you have any idea what your point is?

Yeah my point is why are you promoting something that has never been in America and exists no place on Earth? Is this economic system you're trying to sell, sort of like the Utopia Marx promoted? If so that ain't gonna work either. Now about this mixture you say is the real thing, not your Marxist utopia, but a real economy, mixture of what?

Free markets have been and are in America. That they are imperfect does not mean they do not exist.

The Free market is a summary term for an array of exchanges that take place in society. Each exchange is undertaken as a voluntary agreement between two people or between groups of people represented by agents. These two individuals (or agents) exchange two economic goods, either tangible commodities or nontangible services. Thus, when I buy a newspaper from a news dealer for fifty cents, the news dealer and I exchange two commodities: I give up fifty cents, and the news dealer gives up the newspaper. Or if I work for a corporation, I exchange my labor services, in a mutually agreed way, for a monetary salary; here the corporation is represented by a manager (an agent) with the authority to hire.

Anything that interferes with that process makes the market less free, but it is still there. Nothing fantastical about it.

(Re-)Introducing: The American School of Economics



When the United States became independent from Britain it also rebelled against the British System of economics, characterized by Adam Smith, in favor of the American School based on protectionism and infrastructure and prospered under this system for almost 200 years to become the wealthiest nation in the world. Unrestrained free trade resurfaced in the early 1900s culminating in the Great Depression and again in the 1970s culminating in the current Economic Meltdown.


Closely related to mercantilism, it can be seen as contrary to classical economics. It consisted of these three core policies:

protecting industry through selective high tariffs (especially 1861–1932) and through subsidies (especially 1932–70)

government investments in infrastructure creating targeted internal improvements (especially in transportation)

a national bank with policies that promote the growth of productive enterprises rather than speculation


Frank Bourgin's 1989 study of the Constitutional Convention shows that direct government involvement in the economy was intended by the Founders


The goal, most forcefully articulated by Hamilton, was to ensure that dearly won political independence was not lost by being economically and financially dependent on the powers and princes of Europe. The creation of a strong central government able to promote science, invention, industry and commerce, was seen as an essential means of promoting the general welfare and making the economy of the United States strong enough for them to determine their own destiny.


American School (economics) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
American School of Economics

 

[Dad2three]

An example of monopoly power is Exxon.

interesting that when a liberal is asked to show how capitalism leads to monopoly he picks Exxon not knowing that it is highly controlled by liberal govt such that new competition is harshly restricted. For example we have had no new refineries in about 30 years!!

We don't need any new refineries, if we did we'd have shortages.

No, if we did the supply of oil would be greater and the price of oil would reflect that. Oil would be cheaper than it otherwise would have been.

Do we "need" refineries? I guess not, no more than we "need" faster computers or we "need" most products. But need has nothing to do with the equation. Its about supply and demand--and whatever interferes with that.

 

[ShackledNation]

We don't need any new refineries, if we did we'd have shortages.

No, if we did the supply of oil would be greater and the price of oil would reflect that. Oil would be cheaper than it otherwise would have been.

Do we "need" refineries? I guess not, no more than we "need" faster computers or we "need" most products. But need has nothing to do with the equation. Its about supply and demand--and whatever interferes with that.

What I can gleam for it is that the price of oil is trending upward by a larger degree than the supply of oil. That suggests that the demand for oil is growing, but the supply for oil is not expanding at a rate large enough to prevent the price from rising as a result of the increased demand. It says nothing about what would happen if the supply increased, and in no way refutes the idea that if the supply of oil increased the price of oil would decrease.

Much of the price of oil is determined by speculation. If the supply of oil were set to increase by a significant amount, speculators would likely push down the price of oil.

Do you even know what you are posting?

 

[EdwardBaiamonte]

An example of monopoly power is Exxon.

interesting that when a liberal is asked to show how capitalism leads to monopoly he picks Exxon not knowing that it is highly controlled by liberal govt such that new competition is harshly restricted. For example we have had no new refineries in about 30 years!!

We don't need any new refineries, if we did we'd have shortages.

or higher prices!! Which we have!
The point being that the libcommies talk about monopolies and they can't find where the govt is not heavily involved! So I guess that clears capitalism from the charge of having a tendency toward monopoly.