I am not a libertarian, and have argued for a reasonable degree of regulation. But there is still plenty of regulation in the system, probably too much. In any event, the economy is not, per se, a common resource, although there is a community interest in its general health. The economy is a summary of a number of market transactions, most of them between private individuals reaping the fruit of their labor, or investment, or invention, or whatever.
The primary way we maximize the economy is through a relatively free market, because decentralized decision-making is intrinsic to the success of markets; because the assignment of ownership also means the assignment of responsibility for the property, rather than letting it lay unattended; because people will exert themselves for themselves and their families more vigorously than for some vague commons; and because it is just for people to be able to accumulate through their effort, including being able to assign their property as a gift. |
