Free enterprise has spotty track record

Some believe the role of government is to do as little as possible while others believe the role of government is to provide for the "general welfare" as it were.

There is some merit to each position, and those that know me may know which position I would find to have much more merit than the other, but I think an important thing to remember when we talk about the limitations of government, especially in regard to free enterprise.Each one of us may have a different idea of what a government should do, but I think many of us agree that there are things that free enterprise can not do. For example, free enterprise doesn't ensure that the interests of the public are taken into account or that the public is even served by their actions. Free enterprisess have one interest, and that goal is the profitability and sustainability of themselves.

This isn't a bad thing in and of itself, but it would do us well to heed this when we speak of "the free market.” The free market has a terrible track record of keeping the best interests of the American people; from racial equality to the quality of our drinking water. A vote for the free market is not a vote for freedom. A vote for government isn't necessarily either, but to paint the free market as some panacea is to ignore history and refuse to recognize the reality of what the free market is, and more importantly, who it serves.

JASON BENELL

Sandpoint