07-09-2019, 10:23 PM
I've never argued that there should be no government in the mix. Government is needed to adjudicate contracts, for example.
The tendency to oligopoly is, however, a result of putting the government in the mix. Government regulation provides an avenue for business success other than free market competition - namely, lobbying for regulation that will help particular companies, usually the incumbents, against competitors.
Since government inevitably sides with existing companies due to lobbying, some countervailing efforts to prevent existing companies from getting too big is necessary.
The tendency to oligopoly is, however, a result of putting the government in the mix. Government regulation provides an avenue for business success other than free market competition - namely, lobbying for regulation that will help particular companies, usually the incumbents, against competitors.
Since government inevitably sides with existing companies due to lobbying, some countervailing efforts to prevent existing companies from getting too big is necessary.