I shall foolishly stick my nose in the government regulation vs. private industry discussion going on here.
The way I see it, the strength of government regulation is that the government is theoretically answerable to its citizens on election day, and has an incentive to work in their best interests (lobbyists & corruption notwithstanding). The downside of government regulation is monolithic, arrogant, inefficient bureaucracies that work primarily to perpetuate their own existence.
The strength of private industry is creativity, adaptability, and efficiency brought about by competition. The downside of private industry is that companies are answerable only to their shareholders --- there are plenty of companies that would gladly make children's pajamas extra flammable if it would make them an extra dollar or two.
Communism is the bloated inefficiency of government with none of the accountability, and cartels or monopolies are the heartlessness of private industry without the advantages of efficiency or innovation.
Each is best kept to its own sphere. In most industries, the free market works best --- efficiency and innovation rules. In some spheres, accountability and loyalty to the greater good of society is more important than mere efficiency --- i.e. there is no reason law enforcement, prisons, or the military should ever be privatized.
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