The free market

The free market is like an open relationship. It seems good in the abstract, but in reality something is missing. Something like security, trust, happiness, or some protection of your interests. Some things have to be regulated. Most things have to be regulated. That is where the government comes in. The financial crisis we just lived through, or the oil rig we just watched explode all over our beaches, should be all the evidence we need of the importance of putting some restraints on a free market. If you need more, we could talk about child labor, divorced wives left completely destitute at the whim of their husbands, rat droppings in your food, chemical sludge in your rivers, or indentured servitude. The market is a wonderful thing, like relationships, but in order to function satisfactorily there needs to be a little less than complete 'freedom.'