… is from page 175 of a 1978 edition of Georg Simmel’s 1900 volume, The Philosophy of Money:
The exchange of products of labour, or of any other possessions, is obviously one of the purest and most primitive forms of human socialization; not in the sense that “society” already existed and then brought about acts of exchange but, on the contrary, that exchange is one of the functions that creates an inner bond between men – a society, in place of a mere collection of individuals.
DBx: Yes. Neither society nor government is prior to voluntary exchange. Instead, voluntary exchange is prior to society (and, hence, also to government). Voluntary exchange is the chief creator of society. And therefore anything that obstructs voluntary exchange tends to undermine society; such obstructions are antisocial. Among the antisocial pieces of very popular legislation are minimum-wage statutes, prohibitions of so-called “price gouging,” occupational-licensing requirements, and, of course, tariffs.
