Is The Organisation Rigged? Adam Smith On Crony Capitalism, Its Causes—And Cures

Following upward on terminal week's "OUP's Philosopher of the month: Adam Smith".
More than simply around other pretty face pivot factory.
From the Heritage Foundation, March 31, 2018:

Abstract 

For Adam Smith, crony capitalism fails on 2 grounds: It is unjust, favoring a few at the expense of the many, in addition to it is destructive of the desired halt of political economy—economic growth. Smith’s writings are of slap-up locomote today inward their capacity to properly frame this problem, its causes, also as solutions for preventing or mitigating the corruption of gratuitous markets. For Smith, the tendencies to cronyism, which are anchored inward human nature, tin survive tempered by: (1) limiting regime to a few essential powers (defense, management of impartial justice, in addition to sure enough express populace industrial plant in addition to institutions); in addition to (2) educating the populace concerning the “folly” of attempts to straight the economic scheme past times legislators. These approaches offering the best peril to bound crony capitalism, its corruption of natural liberty, in addition to its consequent undermining of benefits of gratuitous markets.

Introduction
Adam Smith, the intellectual founder of modern free-market economics, famously called the economical organisation he advocated “the obvious in addition to uncomplicated organisation of natural liberty.” The benefits he claimed for this organisation of natural freedom include the wealth of nations in addition to an increase inward the independence, liberty, in addition to safety of all members of society—but especially of the non-elite members.

He especially defended it on the grounds that robust economical growth offered the best opportunities for the less advantaged members of society:

The liberal payoff of labor, therefore, as it is the necessary effect, then it is the natural symptom of increasing national wealth. The scanty maintenance of the labouring poor, on the other hand, is the natural symptom that things are at a stand, in addition to their starving status that they are going fast backward.

 Comparing our introduce province of affairs to atmospheric condition when he wrote, nosotros are compelled to acknowledge that these benefits convey been substantially realized past times the organisation nosotros straightaway telephone telephone gratuitous markets or capitalism.

Yet despite this close unbelievable acceleration of wealth in addition to freedom inward the countries that convey adopted Smith’s system, few would claim that this progress has been uncomplicated or uncontroversial—or that the benefits convey accrued as to all. Noted libertarian Charles Koch, writing inward the Washington Post, argued that he agreed alongside i claim made past times socialist Senator Bernie Sanders: that the organisation is rigged inward favor of the few.

Is in that place something inherent inward the organisation of natural liberty, or inward human nature itself, that is systematically corrupting inward ways that undermine its claims of universal benefits? Is Smith overly optimistic or naïve inward his claims concerning the benefits of gratuitous markets?

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...Smith warned that natural freedom faces natural obstacles inward the cast of human nature, especially the wish of especially “merchants in addition to manufacturers” to “rig the system.” They scope this self-enriching corruption of gratuitous markets past times using the ability of regime to procure for themselves “systems either of preference or of restraint.” In then doing, they impose an “absurd taxation on the balance of their fellow-citizens.” These preferences in addition to restraints are what nosotros today telephone telephone crony capitalism....

...Some Stories About William Baumol" in addition to to a greater extent than pertinently: "The Dangerous Rise Of Unproductive Entrepreneurship" in addition to Frank Pasquale: "Entrepreneurship Can Be Unproductive or Destructive".

Additionally, here's Baumol's 1990 newspaper "Entrepreneurship: Productive, Unproductive, in addition to Destructive". (30 page PDF)