To harken back to the simplicity of the economy of a hundred years ago as a model to be frozen in time is the height of absurdity. I don't think we were exactly "flourishing" in a sweatshop economy that had no worker rights, 60-70 hour workweeks for minimal pay, women with little say in politics or economics, and slavery followed by segregation.
Then, there was no nuclear waste, identity theft, or special purpose entity accounting, to name a few of the thousands of complexities that have since evolved. To expect business to fully police itself, or that just because there are laws on the books that they will all be enforced in a timely and effective manner is not realistic either. There are externalities that will be fully socialized if not addressed outside of corporate boardrooms, and a middle ground is necessary. Neither of the idealisms of extreme free marketism or extreme socialism are workable, other than for the benefit of a few in the short run. After Enron, do you still trust the captains of industry to run the market unfettered as they see fit ? I never did. The government, when input is not just coming from those who throw the most money at it, is one of the few ways to balance the scales. Perfect economic efficiency is not the be all and end all in a society. When manipulation, which can still be exercised by those with relatively more power in a "free" market, tilts too far in certain directions, all hell breaks loose.
How many times must we learn this lesson ? |
