14 May 2004
Economy Doesn't Need Protection

Absolutely! Positively! And when India stops protecting their labor market, and the EU stops protecting their farm market, and South Africa releases control of the diamond industry, and OPEC disbands, and the entire world becomes safe to live and do business in, with a unified currency (prefereably based on a commodity standard, like, say, gold), I'll stop suggesting that the American government needs to protect it's citizens against the depredations of foreign government policies.

The more I see of this silliness, the more I'm convinced that "Free Trade" is like "Communism": it can only possibly "work" when the entire planet subscribes to it's ideals. Are we willing to try, like Communist "true believers" tried, to "convert" (overthrow governments, install puppets, etc.) the world to our ideal of Free Trade? I don't think that's gonna happen in my lifetime.

Imagine a major-party candidate delivering the stump speech Silicon Valley needs to hear. The message? Protectionism will only make things worse. By Lawrence Lessig from Wired magazine.

(link) [Wired News]

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