> > In other words, I'm trying to address this at the level of 'How best to
> > divide up finite resource XXX between agents A, B, and C under
> > conditions YYY?' rather than 'Should ruthless sleazy factory owners be
> > allowed to steal food from the mouths of unemployed single mothers with
> > AIDS?'.
>
> Quite literally, that's the biggest problem.
I sort of agree, but from the opposite point of view: the
effectiveness of markets is predicated on the rationality of
the actors, whereas real human beings are irrational and
emotional. It matters little how solid the argument for a
free market in, say, medical care would benefit the most
people in the long run if we are emotionally unwilling to
bear some of the short-term personal consequences. (E.g.,
even if we know rationally that selling organs on a free
market will result in saving the most lives, we are morally
uncomfortable with the obvious result that the poor will be
denied organ transplants in favor of the rich).
-- Lee Daniel Crocker <lee@piclab.com> <http://www.piclab.com/lee/> "All inventions or works of authorship original to me, herein and past, are placed irrevocably in the public domain, and may be used or modified for any purpose, without permission, attribution, or notification."--LDC
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