[lbo-talk] Intellectual property rights, free trade, and free markets

Wojtek S wsoko52 at gmail.com
Wed Aug 8 09:30:59 PDT 2012


Ken: "I have often been been puzzled by the fact that most defenders of capitalism and free markets are also firm defenders of Intellectual Property rights. These rights ensure that companies and authors have monopolies and run counter to the spread of ideas and competition among companies in free markets. The whole idea is to prevent competition."

[WS:] Do not expect logical consistency from the defenders of privilege. "Free market" is sugar coating for medieval domination. It is absolute freedom and protections for haves and competition and market discipline for have-nots, stupid. Intellectual property rights are good because they protect the former from the encroachments by the latter. By the same logic - social welfare is bad and against free market, but bank bailouts and corporate subsidies are good and perfectly compatible with free market.

Pointing logical contradictions in what these people say is a waste of time. A better way is to chop off the heads that hold these ideas - as good old revolutionaries did. All crowned heads deserve a guillotine.

-- Wojtek

"An anarchist is a neoliberal without money."



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