selfishness, and economic competition as the key characteristics of the free market concept. The gen eral theme of the concept, according to Shotter, is that what ever individuals want to do in an economy should not be inter fered with by government, so long as the rights of others are not harmed in the process. Further, the concept, according to Shotter, held that whatever people earn they have a right to keep (governments do not have the right to tax it away).
The free market concept holds that economic welfare will be generated through the selfishness of the members of the economy. The concept also holds that economic injustice will be precluded by competition within the economy. Through such arguments as the invisible hand, proponents of the free market concept contend that application of the concept will provide a distribution of economic benefits almost equal in equity to that which would be provided under ideal conditions. Further, the proponents claim that the greater economic efficiency pro vided by the free market concept
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