I am
not too fond of monopolies - be they private or public. Even public
corporations - if possible - should permit competition. In cases
where there exists natural monopolies, then of course I prefer public
over private ownership. Nathaniel Branden in "Capitalism: The
Unknown Ideal" argues that there are no such thing as "natural"
monopolies. "Nickel of Canada produces more than two-thirds of the
world's nickel -
yet it does not charge monopoly prices. It prices
its product as though it had a great many competitors. Nickel (in the
form of alloy and stainless steels) is competing with aluminum and a
variety of other materials... when the price of bituminous coal
rose... this was instrumental in bringing about a large-scale
conversion to the use of oil and gas in many industries."
Though
Branden made a good point, such industries often tap into something
that I find difficult to lump together with other forms of private
property: subterranean natural resources. Some of these resources are found
under huge bodies of water. And despite Verna E. F. Harrison's
statement in "Free Enterprise" that "A vast amount of today's
wealth was created, not stolen by conquest or fraud", the
capitalization of natural resources is one of the instances where
I'll agree with Proudhon's "property is theft".
Yeah, Luis! Wow, I forgot how much your writing moves me... that sounds cheesy, but seriously. It gets me so angry and worked up that at some point I realize I’m thirsty for intellectual conversation and a brainstorm of concrete ideas...
I'm going to call you soon. I think I still have your number.
paz