Against regulation

From CroziervisionWiki

Author: Patrick Crozier

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Regulation is any government measure other than taxation that involves the use or threat of force. Examples include those on:

• Building
• Safety
• Food hygiene
• Tobacco advertising

I am against regulation because:

• it involves force, which I am against
• it almost invariably makes things worse. For example:
  • Planning (US=zoning)
  • Here are some minor examples:
    • Bus safety regulations that produced buses that spontaneously burst into flames
    • Building regulations preventing the opening of a homeless shelter

Questions

Why do regulations make things worse?

• Partly because of the law of unintended consequences
• Partly because when people are subject to regulation they tend to transfer responsiblity from themselves to the regulation. Or to put it another way, they take their eye off the ball

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