Institute for Energy Research | Earth Day and Capitalism.

Most of my friends are on the left.  Many of them are sympathetic towards the Ron Paul ideology, especially in regards to foreign non-intervention and opposing corporate bailouts and crony capitalism.  But in the end, they still vote for Democrats because they are absolutely convinced that big government is the only possible solution for environmental issues and concerns.  Probably the most frequent question I get from them is something like “Sure, free markets sound good and all, but how are they possibly going to handle peak oil?”

I’ve tried to explain that free markets are in fact the only system that is exactly equipped to handle the problems of allocating scarce resources, but I always struggle with finding the right words and examples to communicate a concept that to me just seems so incredibly obviously.

That’s where Bob Murphy comes in.  This excellent piece makes the argument I’ve been trying to make to all of my lefty friends for years, in a clear and concise manner.  The widespread belief that only government can be trusted to properly consider long-term costs and benefits is completely backwards.  A true must-read.