From: "Strong, Lee" <StrongL at MTMC.ARMY.MIL>
To: "WSFAList (E-mail)" <WSFAList at keithlynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Transportation TANSTAAFL
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 17:14:08 -0500
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>

	Ron Kean stated that there is little civil enthusiasm for a free
market in transportation.  I agree.  There seems to be a general societial
consensus that government should be deeply involved in transportation
planning and construction.  This consensus seems to be worldwide and extend
backwards for thousands of years.  However, within this consensus, there are
varying degrees of opinion, and people interested in freedom should
consistently advocate the most free of admittedly imperfect choices.
	Third world countries also illustrate how government planning does
not automatically yield rational choices.  Many third world countries have
showpiece national airports and national highways that are largely unused
except when the President for Life wants to fly to Europe for a vacation.
Why?  The showpiece projects satisfy political vanity but are not suitable
for the populace's actual transportation needs.  The same amount of money
applied to modest upgrades in the dirt tracks that are the actual
transportation network would yield superior results in terms of internal and
external trade, thereby increasing the general prosperity of the population.
Socialists often justify their dreams in terms of theoretical efficiency,
but the real world results are that national planning often leads to
national bungling.