Is free market capitalism a means to an end or an end unto itself?

[Mordecai]

Vote in the poll and give answers.

[Cassius]

Very much a means to an end, an end. I mean, my secular 'goal' in life is to maximise my opportunities, along with those of my family and, to an extent, my friends, so that I can live a happy, secure and properous life. I believe that can best be done under the aegis of a mixed-economy with strong leanings towards the free market. I'm not a free-market fundamentalist. There are plenty of things that the market doesn't provide very well at all, and thus government's are needed to provide them (policing, infrastructure, the military etc.). However, I am of the opinion that the government cannot do too much, and thus in those situations some kind of partnership is needed between government and enterprise in order for the remaining gaps to be filled in (on healthcare in particular).

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Free markets aren't real.

[Cassius]

Free markets aren't real.

This is also very true. They are entirely an economic concept which can only be applied in the realm of theory, much like a purely statist economy. Not to say that watered down versions of both are not present in the real world.

[Person Man]

It starts out as the former and becomes the latter, like many other great designs in history.

[Gustaf]

It's both. The freedom to live where you want and work with what you want and live in a society that allows you to satisfy your preferences without moralizing over it are all important principles in their own right which are tied to free market capitalism.