Does the free market encourage moral behavior? Virgil Henry
Storr, Research Associate Professor in the Department of
Economics at George Mason University, recently wrote a report
called “The Impartial spectator and the moral teachings of
markets.” He addresses critics’ concerns that the free market
brings out and nurtures human vices. Countless commentators have
stated that “engaging in market activity can be corrupting.”
Storr highlights two notable quotes. Aristotle “believed that
there was something unnatural about the kind of wealth getting
that occurred in the market.” Karl Marx “believed that the
market could transform man into a ‘spiritual and physical
monster.’” Storr, who is also Director of Graduate Student
Programs in the Mercatus Center, addresses these famous claims
with quotes from those who have “made the point that markets are
moral training grounds where virtues are rewarded and
cultivated.” Michael Novak stated that engaging in trade
“teaches care, discipline, frugality, clear accounting, pr