I caught another reminder of the beauty of free markets yesterday on slashdot.com. If you are not familiar it is a technology related web portal. They tend to be left wing in their politics, but try to stay out of the political arena, in my opinion.

They linked to a story of a state in India that is trying to encourage citizens and businesses to shun Microsoft products because of their 'Monopolistic businesses practices'. Those of us following the anti-globalization debates, understand that the people that have prospered in India, have done so by using and specializing in Microsoft products. There is a reason for it. PEOPLE USE THEM!!

They encourage using open source products such as Linux and Open Source applications. Some of these products are fine, and some are worth what you pay for it, which is nothing. I have used Linux professionally and personally. While it has some very legitimate uses that it is great with, usability for the average person is not its strong suit. (OK Linux heads this is not intended to start the great operating system holy wars, it is just a statement of opinion).

Now for where this all ties together with markets. Entities do best in markets when they recognize a need and try to fill that need in the most efficient, effective way. The problem with too many who push the Open Source movement, the justification is to combat Microsoft, and not to fill a void. That is too bad because there is a void to be filled, but by people who think like capitalists, not victims.

This beings me back to the Indian state in question. The article states that the government there is communist, translated that means they don't understand markets, but are sure they are bad. This should be good news for America, but since increasingly American people and Politicians also don't understand markets and why they work, it just makes the future of globalization, and our role in it more murky.

This of course is one isolated incident in a large world, but look closely and we see people in China despairing about the growing gap between rich and poor (another communist state). This shows the long held belief of mine that Socialist and Communist beliefs will sabotage themselves in the end. Hopefully we won't join them in our quest to make America fair and just.