“Every member of Mr. Trump’s advisory councils should wrestle with his or her conscience,” Lawrence Summers, the former Treasury secretary and former president of Harvard, wrote on the Financial Times website on Tuesday, “and ponder Edmund Burke’s famous warning that ‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.’”
See “Why Are All These Business Leaders Still With Trump?”. Vikas Bajaj and Stuart A. Thompson, New York Times, 2017-08-16.
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Democracy: quote of the day
"Democracy is about majority rule, not majoritarian tyranny."
"Gandhi won't leave India", Gopalkrishna Gandhi, New York Times, 2017-08-14
We do have to be careful even about the phrase “majority rule”. Does the majority rule about climate change? If the majority is purple people do they get to rule that all orange people should leave the country?
“Majority rules” should be limited to the majority elects those who govern, not to each and every rule that a government makes. And in our last election, a minority of those who voted determine who would become president.
Consider also that many corporations want to eliminate many rules that “the majority” made: rules about safety, rules about pollution, rules about…
"Gandhi won't leave India", Gopalkrishna Gandhi, New York Times, 2017-08-14
We do have to be careful even about the phrase “majority rule”. Does the majority rule about climate change? If the majority is purple people do they get to rule that all orange people should leave the country?
“Majority rules” should be limited to the majority elects those who govern, not to each and every rule that a government makes. And in our last election, a minority of those who voted determine who would become president.
Consider also that many corporations want to eliminate many rules that “the majority” made: rules about safety, rules about pollution, rules about…
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Thanks to my cardiologist
Today I saw my cardiologist for the sign-off on my heart surgery (see I’m back!, Getting sick is only for the rich or the well-insured, and Modern Medicine and Let Them Eat Cake Politicians).
I told her that I didn’t know whether to be mad or glad. Mad because of all I went through for the open heart surgery and all the side effects that went with it. Glad because of what the surgery had repaired.
Between the latest EKG results and what she heard with her stethoscope she was very pleased. Her delight made me very optimistic for continued improvement.
P.S. I know that she may well read this, but I still want her to know that her optimism was very contagious.
I told her that I didn’t know whether to be mad or glad. Mad because of all I went through for the open heart surgery and all the side effects that went with it. Glad because of what the surgery had repaired.
Between the latest EKG results and what she heard with her stethoscope she was very pleased. Her delight made me very optimistic for continued improvement.
P.S. I know that she may well read this, but I still want her to know that her optimism was very contagious.
Monday, August 07, 2017
Laugh in the name of science
In a plea for me to support the Union of Concerned Scientists I received the "2008 Center for Science and Democracy Calendar". It has 12 hilarious cartoons about those who try to deny the science behind so much: climate change, football head injuries, and more. Normally I throw solicitations away, but this had a real cool calendar. I sent the solicitation back with a five-dollar bill and kept the calendar.
I checked the website at http://www.ucsusa.org/ but only found the 2017 calendar at https://store.ucsusa.org/collections/all-products.
I checked the website at http://www.ucsusa.org/ but only found the 2017 calendar at https://store.ucsusa.org/collections/all-products.
“Best Places to Retire”?
AARP http://www.aarp.org/home-family/friends-family/info-2017/25-best-places-to-retire-fd.html and others often publish lists of “Best Places to Retire”. First, “best” is subjective. One person’s “best” can be another person’s “worst”.
Second, these “best” lists often include taxes, the higher the taxes the lower the rating. Tax is one of those things you get what you pay for. If “high” taxes are paying for subsidizing business to get them to relocate, the taxes are not much benefit for retirees. If the “high” taxes are paying for infrastructure such as emergency services then they can be of great benefit to retirees.
Even a given area can have great variation in benefit to retirees. For example, most senior housing is in the “middle of nowhere”: infrequent bus service and very long walks to anything. On the other hand, when we decide to sell our house, there are several senior residences that are close to bus stops and within walking distance of shops and restaurants.
Second, these “best” lists often include taxes, the higher the taxes the lower the rating. Tax is one of those things you get what you pay for. If “high” taxes are paying for subsidizing business to get them to relocate, the taxes are not much benefit for retirees. If the “high” taxes are paying for infrastructure such as emergency services then they can be of great benefit to retirees.
Even a given area can have great variation in benefit to retirees. For example, most senior housing is in the “middle of nowhere”: infrequent bus service and very long walks to anything. On the other hand, when we decide to sell our house, there are several senior residences that are close to bus stops and within walking distance of shops and restaurants.
Comment to Krugman and health care
Don't like paying for health care? Don't get sick, don't grow old, and don't visit doctors.
I rarely get sick and I couldn't stop growing old, but I do visit doctors regularly to check on how well I am. For a man my age, the verdicts have been that I am in pretty good shape. But they have also been concerned about my heart.
This year a cardiologist determined I should be seen by surgeons. The verdict was that I needed a valve replacement. Four months later I am slowly getting back to the activity level I once had.
But if had to pay all the costs that have been incurred, I would probably be back in the hospital with a stroke. If I had to pay all the costs, I would probably have to sell my house.
As it is, I pay a few dollars for this, a couple hundred for that, and on and on. The max I could pay is $5,000. I'm not there yet, but I would say that lots of minimum wage workers would have a hard time making those payments.
Posted to http://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/opinion/healthcare-single-payer-children.html?comments#permid=23604618.
I rarely get sick and I couldn't stop growing old, but I do visit doctors regularly to check on how well I am. For a man my age, the verdicts have been that I am in pretty good shape. But they have also been concerned about my heart.
This year a cardiologist determined I should be seen by surgeons. The verdict was that I needed a valve replacement. Four months later I am slowly getting back to the activity level I once had.
But if had to pay all the costs that have been incurred, I would probably be back in the hospital with a stroke. If I had to pay all the costs, I would probably have to sell my house.
As it is, I pay a few dollars for this, a couple hundred for that, and on and on. The max I could pay is $5,000. I'm not there yet, but I would say that lots of minimum wage workers would have a hard time making those payments.
Posted to http://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/opinion/healthcare-single-payer-children.html?comments#permid=23604618.
North Korea and Washington’s Farewell Address
"The nation which indulges towards another an habitual hatred, or an habitual fondness, is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest." - George Washington, "Farewell Address" The U.S. Senate has one of its members read this every year. Do most of them stay away or sleep through it?
Posted to http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/04/opinion/north-korea-nuclear-program-trump.html?comments#permid=23130284.
Posted to http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/04/opinion/north-korea-nuclear-program-trump.html?comments#permid=23130284.
Instant junk mail
Every so often I receive a letter with no return address but lots of attack printing on the front and back. I thought that these letters were in response to my “Party of One” columns in the Reader Weekly, but I stopped writing for the Reader over a year ago when I had been bumped one too many times.
But they keep coming every few weeks and every few weeks I put them unopened into the recycle box. I guess this mysterious writer also reads this blog. Thank goodness I don’t allow comments on it.
My advice to this writer is start your own blog. It’s free and you might even earn a bit of ad revenue.
But they keep coming every few weeks and every few weeks I put them unopened into the recycle box. I guess this mysterious writer also reads this blog. Thank goodness I don’t allow comments on it.
My advice to this writer is start your own blog. It’s free and you might even earn a bit of ad revenue.
Wednesday, August 02, 2017
Writer’s block in the modern era
Sometimes when I have a blog idea but don’t have Internet access, I feel l am locked i a cell with reams of paper but no pen.
Trump’s affinity to Russia
Why does Donald Trump have such an affinity to Russia?
Alexander Borodin wrote an opera about him:
Prince Ego!
Alexander Borodin wrote an opera about him:
Prince Ego!
Monday, July 31, 2017
Foxconn’s foxy con
Foxconn want’s to build a factory in Wisconsin that will employ three thousand workers possibly becoming 13,000 workers. Foxconn plans to invest up to $13 billion in the plant. Gov. Scott Walker said that the Wisconsin will supply up to $3 billion dollars in incentives. See http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/business/technology/4303440-foxconn-announces-major-new-manufacturing-plant-wisconsin.
Oops! Aren’t Republicans the ones who believe in standing on your own two feet and not accepting government handouts.
If it makes business sense to build such a project, then shouldn’t business be the one investing its own money.
See “Foxconn’s long con”, John Biggs, TechCrunch, 2017-07-28. Politicians around the world have been out-foxed by Foxconn. Don’t these politicians read Adam Smith: “This order of men is not to be trusted.”
Oops! Aren’t Republicans the ones who believe in standing on your own two feet and not accepting government handouts.
If it makes business sense to build such a project, then shouldn’t business be the one investing its own money.
See “Foxconn’s long con”, John Biggs, TechCrunch, 2017-07-28. Politicians around the world have been out-foxed by Foxconn. Don’t these politicians read Adam Smith: “This order of men is not to be trusted.”
Italian commedia dell’arte predicted Trump’s style (White House craziness)
Just in case nobody of the 2000+ responders picked up on Scaramucci's name, it should have been a warning to somebody in Trump's administration. Didn't anybody pick up that Scaramucci is a stock character in Italian commedia dell'arte. The name means "little skirmisher". Check it out on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaramouche.
Published as a comment at http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/us/politics/anthony-scaramucci-white-house.html?comments#permid=23517145
Published as a comment at http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/us/politics/anthony-scaramucci-white-house.html?comments#permid=23517145
More update craziness
Somewhere, somehow in all the back and forth about getting my Epson WF-3640 all the presets were many: letter, envelope, and others I’ve forgotten.
The other day I finally got two-sided letter printing to print properly. For some reason the second side was upside down from the front side. I finally figured out that I had to have the presets for two-sided printing set to long-edge. I never had had to worry about that before. In all this grand “improvement” the preset was set to short-edge. For the first time ever with many printers, I had to set a preset called “Two-sided printing”.
Next confusion is printing an envelope. No preset and the preview shows a jumble of printing. I got the presets for an envelope all set and placed an envelope in the rear tray with the flap on the top pointing to the left.
Nope! The software printed on the flap side with top pointing to the right. I had noticed the same misdirection in one of the trays, months ago.
Just another example of what professors Russel and Vinsel wrote about lack of maintenance: “Maintenance vs. innovation”
http://magree.blogspot.com/2017/07/maintenance-vs-innovation.html.
The other day I finally got two-sided letter printing to print properly. For some reason the second side was upside down from the front side. I finally figured out that I had to have the presets for two-sided printing set to long-edge. I never had had to worry about that before. In all this grand “improvement” the preset was set to short-edge. For the first time ever with many printers, I had to set a preset called “Two-sided printing”.
Next confusion is printing an envelope. No preset and the preview shows a jumble of printing. I got the presets for an envelope all set and placed an envelope in the rear tray with the flap on the top pointing to the left.
Nope! The software printed on the flap side with top pointing to the right. I had noticed the same misdirection in one of the trays, months ago.
Just another example of what professors Russel and Vinsel wrote about lack of maintenance: “Maintenance vs. innovation”
http://magree.blogspot.com/2017/07/maintenance-vs-innovation.html.
Thursday, July 27, 2017
Maintenance vs. innovation
Professors Andrew Russell and Les Vinsel wrote an interesting column for the New York Times that addresses the problems of many current Mac users who are trying to decipher how things that used to work are now mysterious black boxes: “Let’s Get Excited About Maintenance”, New York Times, 2017-07-22.
See also "Don’t get cut on Sierra" and "Computers under the control of magicians".
See also "Don’t get cut on Sierra" and "Computers under the control of magicians".
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Glyphosate and free market
I posted the following to
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/25/dining/ben-and-jerrys-ice-cream-herbicide-glyphosate.html?comments#permid=23415777
"Free marketers" too often ignore two important points of a true free market: buyers have all the information they need and there are no externalities.
If a product has any contamination from peanuts, then any buyer who is allergic to peanuts should have that information.
No externalities means that all costs are paid for in the transaction. If a manufacturer is putting anything in the air or water that could harm someone, that is an externality.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/25/dining/ben-and-jerrys-ice-cream-herbicide-glyphosate.html?comments#permid=23415777
"Free marketers" too often ignore two important points of a true free market: buyers have all the information they need and there are no externalities.
If a product has any contamination from peanuts, then any buyer who is allergic to peanuts should have that information.
No externalities means that all costs are paid for in the transaction. If a manufacturer is putting anything in the air or water that could harm someone, that is an externality.
Don’t get cut on Sierra (Apple's latest OS)
Sierra is Spanish for saw and is the name of Apple’s latest operating system OS 10.12.
However, it is not for everybody. It has lots of gotchas that will cost the unwary in time and money.
When you upgrade, it moves your entire Document folder to iCloud. One, the Document folder may contain more data than you have room for in your iCloud account. Two, you will have to always have access to the web to access your data.
The first is not a big problem in that Apple will ask you to upgrade your iCloud space. In my case, 50GB cost me 99 cents a month, automatically taken out of my checking account.
The second can be a really big problem if you either work offline a lot or have limited wireless service. Although I did the upgrade at a coffee shop, I think home usage added a couple of GBs in only a day or two.
My current plan is for 15GB per month and I generally use about 8GB. It used to be rather simple to calculate total prices, but it seems that AT&T is making calculations even more obscure. I gave up for now trying to calculate the cost of unlimited service.
At least I have a nearby AT&T store. I plan to stop by soon for a power-cord gadget. I’ll ask if they can help me calculate the true cost to a significant upgrade.
I think I have all the really important, current “Document” data moved off iCloud and accessible without an internet connection. Now the next question is how do I back that data up to iCloud at my convenience.
P.S. I found out that the latest Epson software for my printer is valid for older operating systems. The list only gives the latest two OS’s but another page shows it would work for several older OS’s. Sigh!
However, it is not for everybody. It has lots of gotchas that will cost the unwary in time and money.
When you upgrade, it moves your entire Document folder to iCloud. One, the Document folder may contain more data than you have room for in your iCloud account. Two, you will have to always have access to the web to access your data.
The first is not a big problem in that Apple will ask you to upgrade your iCloud space. In my case, 50GB cost me 99 cents a month, automatically taken out of my checking account.
The second can be a really big problem if you either work offline a lot or have limited wireless service. Although I did the upgrade at a coffee shop, I think home usage added a couple of GBs in only a day or two.
My current plan is for 15GB per month and I generally use about 8GB. It used to be rather simple to calculate total prices, but it seems that AT&T is making calculations even more obscure. I gave up for now trying to calculate the cost of unlimited service.
At least I have a nearby AT&T store. I plan to stop by soon for a power-cord gadget. I’ll ask if they can help me calculate the true cost to a significant upgrade.
I think I have all the really important, current “Document” data moved off iCloud and accessible without an internet connection. Now the next question is how do I back that data up to iCloud at my convenience.
P.S. I found out that the latest Epson software for my printer is valid for older operating systems. The list only gives the latest two OS’s but another page shows it would work for several older OS’s. Sigh!
Thursday, July 20, 2017
Computers under the control of magicians
How many of you are old enough to remember:
“The computer for the rest of us” and
“1984 will not be like 1984”
These were two of the slogans that Apple used in 1984 when it introduced the Mac. I loved it with its WIMP interface (Windows, Icons, Menus, Pictures). Almost everything you needed to know was on the screen.
Many Mac users of that time were eager for the newest operating system or newest Mac: hard drives, multi-tasking, color.
I can’t pinpoint when it all changed, but I stopped looking forward to the latest operating system. Features that worked fine on OS P were a nightmare on OS Q. It seemed that the gratuitous changes were made only to keep programmers employed. Or that a new set of programmers had to do it their way no matter what most long-time customers wanted.
This has been one of those bad years for me.
Sometime in March or April, Apple made a minor update. It did not seem like a big deal and I installed it. I found out much to my chagrin that my Epson WF-3640 would no longer accept paper from anything but Tray 2. I thought the machine didn’t work and exchanged it with Best Buy on a warranty. The second one did the same thing.
After a couple of calls to Epson I learned that Apple had changed the print dialog to all the information the user needed from being on the screen to being buried under certain choices. Once I had that info, I could print from whatever tray I chose.
Then Apple provided a gratuitous “EPSON Printer Software Update, Version 3.3”. I downloaded and installed it. Now my printer didn’t work at all!
A third person at Epson said it was my cable. Well, as I talked to him, I did have my external hard drive connected, not the printer. But when I was off the phone and had the proper connection, it still didn’t work.
I next tried the the friendly folks at Geek Squad. I described the basic problem and they were ready to set me up with a Geek Squad account. Each time I got near the bottom of the payment window it would disappear. What were they ready to blame: my browser (Safari). What? There are dozens of payment windows that work just find with Safari.
I had to go elsewhere and excused myself.
Today, I despaired and went to Best Buy to buy another cable. i also bought a couple of thumb drives to replace those that I “crashed” by taking them out of the USB slot before closing them. Another story for another day maybe.
I plugged my new cable into my MacBook and into the printer. Nothing happened. I couldn’t print.
I didn’t keep track of the buttons I pushed on the printer and the computer, but the results varied widely as to what happened. Eventually my Mac and my Epson printer connected properly with one another. I really don’t want to be a scientist who keeps meticulous notes on every step and every observation. After all, the Mac is the computer for the rest of us. And after 58 years being involved with computers (from punched cards to rooms full of tape drives) I just want to be an ordinary user.
Then I exchanged the new cable for the old cable. Everything worked as it should.
As a senior wailed in the computer lab when I was a graduate assistant, “That isn’t what I meant!
“The computer for the rest of us” and
“1984 will not be like 1984”
These were two of the slogans that Apple used in 1984 when it introduced the Mac. I loved it with its WIMP interface (Windows, Icons, Menus, Pictures). Almost everything you needed to know was on the screen.
Many Mac users of that time were eager for the newest operating system or newest Mac: hard drives, multi-tasking, color.
I can’t pinpoint when it all changed, but I stopped looking forward to the latest operating system. Features that worked fine on OS P were a nightmare on OS Q. It seemed that the gratuitous changes were made only to keep programmers employed. Or that a new set of programmers had to do it their way no matter what most long-time customers wanted.
This has been one of those bad years for me.
Sometime in March or April, Apple made a minor update. It did not seem like a big deal and I installed it. I found out much to my chagrin that my Epson WF-3640 would no longer accept paper from anything but Tray 2. I thought the machine didn’t work and exchanged it with Best Buy on a warranty. The second one did the same thing.
After a couple of calls to Epson I learned that Apple had changed the print dialog to all the information the user needed from being on the screen to being buried under certain choices. Once I had that info, I could print from whatever tray I chose.
Then Apple provided a gratuitous “EPSON Printer Software Update, Version 3.3”. I downloaded and installed it. Now my printer didn’t work at all!
A third person at Epson said it was my cable. Well, as I talked to him, I did have my external hard drive connected, not the printer. But when I was off the phone and had the proper connection, it still didn’t work.
I next tried the the friendly folks at Geek Squad. I described the basic problem and they were ready to set me up with a Geek Squad account. Each time I got near the bottom of the payment window it would disappear. What were they ready to blame: my browser (Safari). What? There are dozens of payment windows that work just find with Safari.
I had to go elsewhere and excused myself.
Today, I despaired and went to Best Buy to buy another cable. i also bought a couple of thumb drives to replace those that I “crashed” by taking them out of the USB slot before closing them. Another story for another day maybe.
I plugged my new cable into my MacBook and into the printer. Nothing happened. I couldn’t print.
I didn’t keep track of the buttons I pushed on the printer and the computer, but the results varied widely as to what happened. Eventually my Mac and my Epson printer connected properly with one another. I really don’t want to be a scientist who keeps meticulous notes on every step and every observation. After all, the Mac is the computer for the rest of us. And after 58 years being involved with computers (from punched cards to rooms full of tape drives) I just want to be an ordinary user.
Then I exchanged the new cable for the old cable. Everything worked as it should.
As a senior wailed in the computer lab when I was a graduate assistant, “That isn’t what I meant!
Thursday, July 06, 2017
Playing the right game with North Korea
Maybe the best solution is to send a Korean-speaking envoy who plays jang-gi (a strategy board game). Such an envoy could probably get a better dialogue going with Kim Jong-un in a week than a year of huffing and puffing from Washington. Many in Washington would think this a fool's errand, but I think George Washington would definitely approve (see "Farewell Address", https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21/pdf/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21.pdf).
Comment to “Kim Jong-un is not a freakish buffoon”, David C. Kang, New York Times, 2017-07-05
http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/05/opinion/kim-jong-un-north-korea-sanctions.html?comments#permid=23152988
Comment to “Kim Jong-un is not a freakish buffoon”, David C. Kang, New York Times, 2017-07-05
http://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/05/opinion/kim-jong-un-north-korea-sanctions.html?comments#permid=23152988
Wednesday, July 05, 2017
What is the reaction when NPR tweets the “Declaration of Independence”?
You will have to read “NPR’s tweets expose a thin grasp of American history?” See “NewsCut: MPR News Reflections and observations on the news”: http://blogs.mprnews.org/newscut/2017/07/self-evident-truths-our-thin-grasp-of-history/2017-07-01.
It does make me proud to be an MPR member.
It does make me proud to be an MPR member.
Saturday, July 01, 2017
Modern medical care precludes a “free market”
One of the latest to call for a free market in health care is Bert Stephens, one of the New York Times “conservative” columnists. His latest column, “A Price for the G.O.P.’s Health Care Insanity”. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/30/opinion/congress-health-savings-accounts.html He takes on Obama for creating the mess and the Republicans for making matters worse with their “fixes”.
He blames it as the “third party problem”; the consumer of health care does not shop around for the best deal but depends on an insurance company to pay the bills.
There may still be a free market in dentistry, but there cannot be a free market in health care. Why? What is one of the criteria for a “free market”: many sellers. We have long ago lost many of our independent doctors: they are mostly in large clinic/hospital complexes.
In Duluth, Minnesota, we have two choices: Essentia Health or St. Luke’s. It may still be that if you have company-provided health insurance, then your only choice may be a given clinic. I know that we have switched clinics when we switched jobs.
Oh, sure, if we can’t get into one of these clinics or decide an out-of-town clinic is a better choice, we can drive a few hours or stay overnight to visit other clinics. My wife couldn’t get into a dermatologist in Duluth and so drove to the Twin Cities. We have had several friends who have stayed in Rochester to use the services of the Mayo Clinic.
There are certain specialties that are available outside the clinics, such as eye care.
A clinic may give you a choice of doctors, but you are often limited to those who have current openings in their schedule. If your doctor leaves the clinic, the clinic may assign you to the next available doctor I don’t remember if I chose my first cardiologist, but I know I was assigned to another when my then current cardiologist went elsewhere. When my cardiologist decided that I needed heart surgery, I was assigned all the subsequent surgeons.
Another consideration is our knowledge of the available doctors. Do we know who is available? Do we know their credentials and reputations? A free market includes having all the information to make a decision. Very few of us will take the time to get the information, or, if we get it, have enough knowledge to make a decision.
He blames it as the “third party problem”; the consumer of health care does not shop around for the best deal but depends on an insurance company to pay the bills.
There may still be a free market in dentistry, but there cannot be a free market in health care. Why? What is one of the criteria for a “free market”: many sellers. We have long ago lost many of our independent doctors: they are mostly in large clinic/hospital complexes.
In Duluth, Minnesota, we have two choices: Essentia Health or St. Luke’s. It may still be that if you have company-provided health insurance, then your only choice may be a given clinic. I know that we have switched clinics when we switched jobs.
Oh, sure, if we can’t get into one of these clinics or decide an out-of-town clinic is a better choice, we can drive a few hours or stay overnight to visit other clinics. My wife couldn’t get into a dermatologist in Duluth and so drove to the Twin Cities. We have had several friends who have stayed in Rochester to use the services of the Mayo Clinic.
There are certain specialties that are available outside the clinics, such as eye care.
A clinic may give you a choice of doctors, but you are often limited to those who have current openings in their schedule. If your doctor leaves the clinic, the clinic may assign you to the next available doctor I don’t remember if I chose my first cardiologist, but I know I was assigned to another when my then current cardiologist went elsewhere. When my cardiologist decided that I needed heart surgery, I was assigned all the subsequent surgeons.
Another consideration is our knowledge of the available doctors. Do we know who is available? Do we know their credentials and reputations? A free market includes having all the information to make a decision. Very few of us will take the time to get the information, or, if we get it, have enough knowledge to make a decision.
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