Legal Barriers to Entry Monopolizing Street Vending
In class today, I talked about the “Social Interest Theory” of Regulation. Note in this article from the Freeman that it is government that is erecting huge barriers to entry and monopolizing something that seems simple, like street vending. Now why would a government change an industry that is about as competitive as an industry can be into a monopoly? Should we trust the institutions that do this to regulate other industries in the social interest, or do you think that they might easily be subject to capture? Could rent seeking be at work here? Read the article and share your thoughts.
-MC
