68 Business vs. Government

<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Market forces work because the granularity of decision making is very small, down to a single customer choosing the best solution at that very instant with the best available information specific to that person. Then business responds to the demand for products, less here, more there, faster, slower, an impossibly unplanable choreography: intricate order emerging from infinite chaos. But good & bountiful products are only a side effect of the real motive of business, which is to make money. Because Liberty is no-holds-barred unless you're not impinging on others, business requires oversight & enforcement of the rules, both of which come from government. Obviously, like any negotiation, business & Government must be in an adversarial relationship, with no collusion, no partnerships, no lobbying & no regulatory capture. So far, so bad.<br /><br /> No one likes their profit opportunities thwarted so there is intense backlash from business towards any perceived interference from government; in fact, be very suspicious if there is no conflict. It's entirely within business' prerogative to make whatever effort necessary to gain profit, and often this conflicts with the wishes or best interests of others. Enforcement of rules & contracts is one of government's three primary purposes: without it there are no markets, there is no profit, and there is no business. Business and government are amoral in their relationship: government is expected to play the game without preconception, personalization or preference, while business cannot lobby, insult, threaten, hamper, bribe or extort without penalization. How could any game possibly be played otherwise?</p>