Minor examples of freer being better

These are minor examples where more freedom is pitched against less freedom.  They are minor.  In some cases very minor.  The reader has to make up his own mind whether they are significant or not.

  • French laws on cycle racing v British laws on cycle racing.  At the beginning of the 20th Century bicycle racing in Britain was almost completely illegal.  Proper road racing was impossible so cyclists had to indulge in illegal time trials.  If the police stopped them, curious at how cyclists seemed to be passing them every 2 minutes the cyclists would have to explain that they were “just out for a ride.” Meanwhile, in France there were far fewer restrictions.  No prizes for guessing in which country pro-cycling prospered.
  • Manners. It seems to me that the freer the country the better the manners.  Take Texas, for instance.
  • R100 v R101.  In the early 1930s the British government commissioned two airship building programmes.  The R100 was to be built by a private company under contract.  The R101 was to be built by the government itself.  At the time it was regarded as a test to see which method was best - though observant readers will know that I would have been in favour of the government not getting involved at all.  The R100 was completed first (and I think at a lower cost) and then crossed the Atlantic (twice I think).  The R101 crashed on its maiden flight killing 48 out of the 52 on board.  What was really interesting was what happened next: the government cancelled the whole programme.  The R100 was scrapped.  An example of the state destroying the competition.
  • Greek archaeological regulations hampering archaelogical research
  • Private lawyers being better than state-appointed ones.

OK, so you have got all these examples but what do they prove?

They prove nothing but they do suggest that freer is better.  What impresses me is the breadth of these (and other) examples.  They come from all over the place, from different places, different times and different human activities, and yet every time you get the same result: freer is better.

PermalinkGeneral • Last Updated: 15 January 2007
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