I may have been unfair in pointing out that Lefties don't know how commerce works. Virtually nobody knows how commerce works. Even great entrepreneurs can operate with ad hoc tools.... without understanding the milieu.
There are three types of commerce. You can read in detail about them here. Trade, Industrial commerce and Clientry. Trade you recognize as the local coffee shop or local flower shop. It is also your drug dealer and your auto repair shop. The goal of trade is to make enough money on each sale to replenish the merchandise and have enough to stay in business. Price competition counts and each sale is final. Trade is what most people mistake for general commerce. In developed countries it comprises about 5% of all dollar transactions, but it is the oldest form of commerce and it takes place with little or no structure around it. It operates in prisons, on battlefronts and everywhere else. This is the only part of commerce that is nearly all based on competition; price and other non-price elements.
Industrial commerce is nearly all the rest of business. Roughly 90% of all transactions in the developed world. Any business with multiple outlets is likely to be industrial commerce. The goal of industrial commerce is to reduce costs. This can be done in many ways: increase output with marketing, use economies of scale in production, combine them both and apply technological innovation. Think about IKEA, Lufthansa, your local housing developer and Bank of America.
Nearly every part of industrial commerce is based on cooperation, not competition. The suppliers of industrial businesses and the workers have an intimate and direct contact with the business. Honesty, trust and honor are the basis for their successful interaction. The same is true for industrial businesses in their relationship with customers. Honor, integrity and prompt recourse are what generate loyal returning customers and is the most effective form of marketing. Every industrial business cherishes its reputation with the final consumer.
Clientry is the final 5% of business transactions. Clientry describes the form of business where the goal is to maintain a lifetime relationship with the client. Clientric businesses include dentists, lawyers, graphic designers, private teachers and accountants. Price is not an issue. Providing the best and most appropriate service is paramount.
Both industrial commerce and clientry require an environment where the government is stable, not too corrupt, not too strong that the tyrant's brother can confiscate the business and where the business can get started without excessive and burdensome regulations.
Three major misconceptions about commerce are:
* that business tries to control government, cronyism,
* that businesses dump products to gain market share and
* greed is a driving force in business.
No entrepreneur I ever met (and I've know nearly 2,000) went into business to deal with government. They generally dislike government local and national. They are forced to get involved with government to protect their business from the rapacious and anti-commerce people in politics. They end up using whatever they can to protect themselves including participation in the government created corruption. I repeat, no one (outside the third world) goes into business to be a government crony.
Dumping is the hypothetical practice of selling large quantities of product at below production costs in order to gain market. Labor unions and inefficient domestic businesses promote this nonsense to try and stop legitimate foreign competition. The problem with dumping is that it doesn't work. It requires a large investment to sell at below production costs and it may drive one business to failure but new businesses will soon emerge that are more efficient and will satisfy the market at the newly established lower price.
Lastly, while some people go into business and some rise to top management positions based on personal greed, it is irrelevant. The only way a business succeeds is by having a better product or service. That is the only way. The motivation of the principals is irrelevant. Nearly every successful business person I have known, heard about or read about was in business because they love business. No matter how much money they make, they keep working because they love business.
Did I skip anything? Yes, I ignored non-profit businesses. Non-profit is a tax status, it has nothing to do with the way a business is run. Countless non-profits have abandoned their non-profit status and usually become better managed.
With these new eyes. Can you see commerce better?