"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary." ~ H.L. Mencken
Do Sweatshops Belong in a Free Market?
Libertarians and market-anarchists often cite the non-aggression principle when summarizing their philosophy, so I am always perplexed when I hear support for sweatshops in conversations with individuals who self-identify as libertarians or market anarchists... By supporting sweat shops, many libertarians and market anarchists both undermine their philosophy and alienate potential supporters among the working class.
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Since employees of civil government have so egregiously infused themselves into what semblance of a market there is left it would be difficult to define "sweatshop" with any objectivity. If you're not a prostitute or a drug dealer or perhaps another participant in a "black market" you wouldn't know much about a "free market" (or market-anarchism) to start with.
As an anarchist I do not "support sweatshops". Do I ask for the parasites of state to intervene to "prevent" the not-so-good jobs from coming about? No. There will be good jobs and bad jobs. But the free market will allow employment for anybody wishing to work. There will be no "unemployment".
Sam
You are wrong, Michael. Sweatshops are consistent with freedom, as are prostitution, drug addiction, and other such things. The point is not to make freedom palatable to people by lying about it, or imagining it will be utopia. It's good enough that it will be better than all the alternatives, and it is that.