Quotation of the Day…
by Don Boudreaux
on April 9, 2017
… is from pages 43-44 of Nathan Oman’s 2016 book, The Dignity of Commerce:
Nevertheless, the doux commerce tradition was correct that markets breed virtues that support a liberal polity. Markets require that one consider the point of view of others and alter one’s behavior to satisfy their desires. This disposition supports three liberal virtues. The first is deliberation, the ability to consider an opposing viewpoint. The other two virtues are negative. Markets weaken loyalty to tribe and family, cultivating the ability to relate to strangers according to impersonal criteria. Finally, markets break down aristocratic habits, encouraging people to relate peaceably as equals.
DBx: See also this 2011 paper by Omar Al-Ubaydli, Dan Houser, John Nye, Maria Pia Paganelli, and Xiaofei Pan.
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