Posted on 03/22/2014 2:46:32 PM PDT by dennisw
WE are beginning to witness a paradox at the heart of capitalism, one that has propelled it to greatness but is now threatening its future: The inherent dynamism of competitive markets is bringing costs so far down that many goods and services are becoming nearly free, abundant, and no longer subject to market forces. While economists have always welcomed a reduction in marginal cost, they never anticipated the possibility of a technological revolution that might bring those costs to near zero.
The first inkling of the paradox came in 1999 when Napster, the music service, developed a network enabling millions of people to share music without paying the producers and artists, wreaking havoc on the music industry. Similar phenomena went on to severely disrupt the newspaper and book publishing industries. Consumers began sharing their own information and entertainment, via videos, audio and text, nearly free, bypassing the traditional markets altogether.
The huge reduction in marginal cost shook those industries and is now beginning to reshape energy, manufacturing and education. Although the fixed costs of solar and wind technology are somewhat pricey, the cost of capturing each unit of energy beyond that is low. This phenomenon has even penetrated the manufacturing sector. More than six million students are enrolled in free massive open online courses, the content of which is distributed at near zero marginal cost.
Industry watchers acknowledge the creeping reality of a zero-marginal-cost economy, but argue that free products and services will entice a sufficient number of consumers to purchase higher-end goods and specialized services, ensuring large enough profit margins to allow the capitalist market to continue to grow. But the number of people willing to pay for additional premium goods and services is limited.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Spot on.
Most unemployment is driven at the state level via state, county and local regulations, permitting and licensing requirements.
I mean people on a lifetime of welfare or the chronically underemployed, not just people between a job. Better to free up those local markets via the underutilized Commerce Clause. I mean if Filburn’s wheat is “in commerce” then so is every local reg ever written.
Keep stepping on their necks until dead. These Marxists are beloved of all the crony billionaires in the world. It’s hard to kill a well-funded bad idea.
Capture the middle-man’s excess profit. That’s what free markets do.
One of the basic, if untaught, axioms of economics is that scarcity is natural. There can never be abundance because everyone’s demand curve shifts.
Shortages, on the other hand, are always caused by government. High prices cure themselves. That’s what we’re seeing.
To my #29 posting.
COrrection and typos:
Name of author of the SISS hearing/study of the PBC is FRANK WATSON, not Watkins.
dropped letters in “Microcosm” and “could”.
Wrote this late at night.
With the right SCOTUS you could cut government at the state and local level down to size tout de suite . That kills the Democrat gravy train of cronyism and not just at the local level.
The Democrat Machine is a pyramid scheme.
Excellent commentary from you both. Thanks. Here’s something that can be done. It’s one way for people who have the desire to learn and work to be re-enfranchised. Everyone, work more for yourselves.
Low-tech rednecks and others around the world have been joining neo-hippie “permaculture” folks on projects for a long time. I’ve worked with a few. There are some very promising energy designs that can be modified to pass regulations or go unnoticed where needed. Such systems can radically lower costs and radically cut down cash flows to the political/regulator class (major investors, often by way of employees’ associations in government-connected, conventional, expensive energy interests along with bonds, etc.).
Rocket Stove Mass Heater
http://www.richsoil.com/rocket-stove-mass-heater.jsp
$2K Solar Space + Water Heating — One Simple DIY System
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/SpaceHeating/DHWplusSpace/Main.htm
Ingenuity and “innovation” do not always come from those approved, degreed, licensed or certified by facist/communist leadership. It has often come from the bottom without proper credit to those doing the work and discovering (includes many in small business). 40 years of further stepping on the ingenuity base has been a foolish direction to take. Some of the “permaculture” folks even call themelves “dirtbags” and the like in mockeries of our sedentary, regulating masters.
We are the “sustainable” “permaculture”—not those who despise our existence and appear to be trying to gradually outlaw all real work and exterminate us. Have fun. Build, and enjoy the slide.
I’d seen the rocket stove mass heater earlier this year. The old Roman baths had their stove pipes built in a series right into the walls to heat up their rooms. I bet you could do that with a few walls and regain all that heat loss going up your flue.
I will check out the solar later. Thanks and I love FR for this very reason. Good debates by good thinkers make for good learning. Take care.
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