The Failure of Capitalism

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by lord of the mark


Where fixed costs are a particularly high portion of total costs, the benefits are competition are lesser relative to the losses. This is called a "natural monopoly"

How about where average costs can be lower at higher service numbers? Should we privatize?

[BeBMan]

Originally posted by Victor Galis
UK rail privatization has resulted in fairly pathetic rail service.

They're moving forward here with privatization of Deutsche Bahn constantly

[Agathon]

Re: The Failure of Capitalism

Originally posted by DaShi
Or more precisely, privatisation.

The US owes a lot of its prosperity last century from private enterprise and as such has applied its logic to nearly everything that can be commodified or not. However, are there any areas where privatisation has failed miserably?

Natural monopolies. Industries with significant externalities. Basically anything subject to market failure.

But I've been saying that for years.

[Japher]

Catastrophic Insurance coverage, ruined the south.

IMO, I think gas companies need regulation.

[Lefty Scaevola]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
I wouldn't want to see private fire departments.

Like the ones run by my old buddy, Marcus Licinius Crassus, in ancient rome?

[Provost Harrison]

Originally posted by Victor Galis
UK rail privatization has resulted in fairly pathetic rail service.

Yes, a horrendously overpriced one at that...

[Aeson]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
Whore houses.

State run whore houses

[Theben]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
I wouldn't want to see private fire departments.

We used to have private fire deptments in the U.S. Some were notable for the fires they started upon which they'd get paid to put out.

The most interesting thing I find is that privatized firefighters were considered thugs and generally untrustworthy people, while the current public firefighters rank higher than any profession in public trust & confidence.

[Arrian]

Catastrophic Insurance coverage, ruined the south.

Hmm...

Is this a standard "insurance companies are the devil" argument, or something really specific to Cat losses?

-Arrian

[GePap]

The military would probably best be kept a public institution.....

[Cort Haus]

Gangsters buying football teams.

[Berzerker]

space related stuff

Yup, what business owner would have wasted all that money to beat the Russians to the Moon to plant a flag? Government is the realm of the insane, oops, I mean drunken sailors. No, even drunken sailors run outta their own money and go sleep it off.

My favorite were the old time mental institution, which received government funding per patient.

That aint privatization, its government contractors - and its all about "incentives". Today's version of this kind of corruption are public schools "diagnosing" children with ADD so they get more federal funds. Surprise surprise, there's an epidemic of ADD. Oh yeah, I'll bet most of those people put away in institutions were sent by government ala "drug rehab".

Of course, healthcare.

The U.S. is the only industrialized nation which uses private insurers to provide healthcare. As a result, we spend far more than any other country, yet we have the shortest lifespans and highest infant mortality rate.

We have more violence and obesity, but our "private" health care system has been corrupted - roughly half the population gets some kind of gov't subsidy so whatever private industry we do have suffers from the rationing and cost shifting resulting from government regulations designed to reign in the federal share.

Law enforcement. If privatized, will quickly degenerate into factional fightings.

Some have argued 9/11 was a result of factional fighting within gov't law enforcement agencies.

I wouldn't want to see private fire departments.

Your house is on fire. The fire truck shows up and presents you with a contract which you have to sign before they'll put your house out.

We used to have private fire deptments in the U.S. Some were notable for the fires they started upon which they'd get paid to put out.

The most interesting thing I find is that privatized firefighters were considered thugs and generally untrustworthy people, while the current public firefighters rank higher than any profession in public trust & confidence.

There are interesting stories from the early part of the 20th century of multiple politically connected (corrupt) "private" fire depts responding to fires and getting into fights with competing fire depts instead of putting out fires. But that aint how privatization would work, homeowners would be part of some co-op with already existing contracts (part of the rent or mortgage etc). The same is true with security firms that provide better protection than the police. The corruption back then was government related, these fire dept's were offshoots of political machines seeking to gain votes by providing "services" and driving real private business out of business.

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by Berzerker
Yup, what business owner would have wasted all that money to beat the Russians to the Moon to plant a flag? Government is the realm of the insane, oops, I mean drunken sailors. No, even drunken sailors run outta their own money and go sleep it off.

Think of all the Blow Up Betties that would buy.