Definition of "Free Market": Sellers who have no mitigating factors pressuring them to sell + Buyers

[patrice]

who have no mitigating factors pressuring them to buy.

- Thom Hartmann

[KittyWampus]

1. isn't starvation a mitigating factor?

[patrice]

2. I believe so; as would be:

Losing one's job if or suffering other significant consequences if:
you don't "buy into" denial of coverage for certain kinds of insurance claims;
you don't buy-into the notion that some people deserve "compensation" that is thousands of Xs base pay;
you don't buy-into/vote on legislation the way TPB wants you to;
you don't sell that suspicious mortgage or other financial instrument;
you don't buy-into and/or sell the right church . . .

just to name a few mitigating factors in social economics. I'm sure I can think of more.

[patrice]

3. Mitigating Factor #6: You will be judged as un-American if you don't buy-into Wars 'r' U.S.

7.You will be treated as less of a man or woman if you don't buy-into multiple sex partners and encourage/sell others on the same.

[johnaries]

4. Which just proves that the "Free Market" is a myth.

There are ALWAYS mitigating factors.

[patrice]

5. My point exactly. We should never let anyone get away with that one.

It's bullshit.

We are NOT Free!

And I know the standard response to that fact is "We are more free than any other nation", but, aside from the fact that that isn't necessarily true either, what other nations are is of only secondary concern. What matters primarily is what/who "We" are.

[patrice]

6. P.S. Which makes the real issues not about "Free Markets", since there is no such thing, but about

who defines the mitigating factors. And even Adam Smith would say BOTH sides in an economic relationships have a RESPONSIBILITY to identify and define what the terms of the deal are.

We have been letting it be all tooooooooooooooooooooooooo TPB one-sided for tooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long.