Okay, I’m having a discussion with a socialist/statist about the free market, monopoly, and anti-trust laws (repeal them!). I’m getting to the point where my austro-libertarian knowledge is incomplete. He says: > It is a major financial commitment for a startup to stock and staff a store. As…

This is the kind of thinking of one who: A) Has never run a business and B) Thinks low price is the only way to compete Unless you find a new way to create a good with less expense than a major corporation, you can’t win on the front of low price. The solution is to find a “niche” or specific w…

I would imagine if an entrepreneur sees that a market is there he’ll start a business. If the evil big business lowers prices then consumers win. If the process repeats consumers win again. Even his straw man argument doesn’t sound so bad to me.

Ask him to first summarize what Rothbard says here [in section **(**4) “Cutthroat” Competition] about why it is a non issue, then to explain why Rohbard is wrong.

Ask him why this doesn’t happen now. The regulators (FTC/DOJ) don’t see a case for every new store that opens in a market, so “predatory pricing” if possible, is still profitable. Especially regarding smallish businesses, they never get accused/taken to court over monopolistic pricing–it just isn’t …

Tell him to go read Kevin Carson.

Big businesses do dominate the market… with the help of the State. And it is no surprise that prices go down when a new competitor enters the market, elementary economic theory predicts that this should happen. Businessmen cannot blindly plan as if their entrance into the market will not affect the …

He’s talking about “predatory pricing.” It’s true he has no understanding of business, entrepreneurship or economics. Send him a copy of the rest of this post: People will say things like “once they’ve got a foothold in a community, what’s to stop them from raising their prices, too? Absolutely no…

Is the expectation of a price war a barrier in the market that keeps competitors out? For example, a company is the only provider of electricity to a small rural town, and can therefore demand monopoly prices. What keeps competitors out is the cost of building another landline. But competitors want …

So you pay higher prices for the increased burden it takes to get electricity or phone or cable services out to your middle-of-nowhere area. So what? Why in the world should someone who chooses to live somewhere that it is more difficult to get services to him not have to shoulder the cost of getti…

"Big Business will Dominate the free market"?

Economics Economics Questions

EmperorNero April 20, 2011, 10:41am 2

He forgets one of the most elementary aspects of capitalism: credit! There’s no such thing as superior economic strength. If there’s money to be earned, a new competitor can borrow money.

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"Big Business will Dominate the free market"?

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