Just think of the United States allowing its interest rates to be set by a bank, chaired by a foreigner, of which more than 200 other countries were members. But it is a fair bet that the number of world currencies will decline in the years ahead and that further progress will be made toward global free trade. All this, however, does not mean the standardization of economic systems - indeed, the very idea of greater choice works against such an outcome. Different countries are free to opt for different trade-offs between economic efficiency and other social and political priorities. The choice is not between free markets and closed systems.
Rules are necessary to allow markets to flourish.
Tax revenue today represents one-third of gross national product in the United States, much less than most other industrial countries, but still much more than used to be the case in a country founded on a tax revolt. Most Americans accept that their taxes should go to finance a wide range of government activities. The argument taking place in America and many other countries today is about how far the role of government should extend, not whether government should be abolished. Another path has been chosen by Sweden, which has opted for a continuing lavish, though somewhat trimmed, welfare state, paid for by high taxes and the encouragement of profitable modern industries through deregulation and market reforms. But the new Swedish model assumes a greater willingness of citizens to pay high taxes than is likely to be found in other industrial countries.