tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25892266.post919451727984917057..comments2024-01-28T01:53:28.605-08:00Comments on hyperborea: Free Markets and No Marketsutopia or busthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09330052275507966278noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25892266.post-54886407987565159332007-12-16T10:47:00.000-08:002007-12-16T10:47:00.000-08:00In addition to problems of asymmetric information,...In addition to problems of asymmetric information,<BR/>it is often tough for third world farmers to get thier products to the nearest major city, much less the global market. The coffee market exemplifies this trend, as often farmers have to end up paying several middlemen just to get their goods out of town, much less to the international markets.<BR/><BR/>The dillemma here is not so much with capitalism as it is with human nature. Farmers in the First World, particularly the United States, are well aware of the competition that lies in wait, and so thus they have established a powerful lobby with which to set trade law to limit international competition. Even with the WTO, the trade has certainly been far from fair or free.<BR/><BR/>My question is: Is subsistence still a viable option?<BR/><BR/>I heard that in many Third World countries, (such as Mexico) global climate change is making it tougher for indigionous people to run subsistance farms as they used to. Should we let the market step in here?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com