Laissez-faire economics is presented as the purset form of freedom in a society. The idea of it is pretty simple and basically represents the concept of  ‘no rules’. If the government steps back and lets markets operate without any interference then individual choice will naturally set the economy leading to prosperity for everyone. It believes that everything will balance out naturally. This sounds very appealing because who doesn’t want freedom from rules and regulations?

The most I thought about it, I realized how disastrous this can be. This concept simple does not work in the real world. Markets are very powerful tools and leaving them unchecked can lead to instability and chaos rather than grwoth and fairness. A system with no rules naturally rewards people with higherer power which leads to severe inequality as opportunites for less to grow becomes very limited. Basic needs like education, housing and healthcare become market products and allow the people in power to only thrive. There is no equal opportunity and hard work wouldn’t lead to success with an unfair economy.

Markets don’t have ethics, values and responsibilites. They only respond to profit which can lead to exploitation as there are no boundaries. Those with power will be able to move faster in pursuit of growth and will eventaully lead to collateral damage because there are no consequences to face.

Limits are imporant because they protect people. They create fairness and make freedom sustainable. Power trends to concentrate without any limits and doesn’t protect the vulnerable. Freedom without limits sounds empowering but in reality it rarely stays fair.

For me, Laissez-faire isn’t about freedom but more about what happens to the society if true freedom is given. With this true freedom, chaos is the result. I no longer think that freedom means the absence of rules. To me, real freedom requires structure and boundaries that protect the human well-being.