Two formally equal parties who voluntarily exchange something must each benefit compared to their respective pre-exchange situation; if one doesn’t, he will decline the exchange. “Formally equal” means that the parties have an equal liberty to interact with others although, of course, their circumstances may be, and in fact always are, different. Not surprisingly, it is with free exchange that ordinary people have become rich starting with the Industrial Revolution, after millennia of dire poverty. Free exchange is not a zero-sum game. Of course, Ms. Jolie is free to help other people, and I have no reason to doubt that she is a caring, benevolent person.

Source: The Guardian December 07, 2023 03:16 UTC