I think the great strength and challenge of the American free market system is the lack of the flow of accurate information. Even with the internet, or maybe even exacerbated by the existence of the internet, more falsehoods are spread than true information. I will give you an example. Recently, the internet has provided many consumers with tools to research preservatives in their CPG goods like lotions or foods. Many of these preservative systems in high doses (like pretty much anything) can cause cancer. But, what this research fails to disclose is the fact that these preservatives work by battling bacteria. While a preservative has a very very small chance of giving you cancer (the sun is more likely to give you cancer), it does protect you from the very real chance of getting a bacterial infection. So, what's worse, skin eating bacteria or skin cancer? It's a tough question, but consumers should be given all the facts, not just the one that an activist group or a huge conglomerate puts out.
To give you an example, the recent recall by Aveeno of it's Baby Lotion, shows that the preservative they chose, wasn't up to the task. There's many activist groups that love the use of weak preservatives. Yet, where are they when there's a product recall on an item they supported? No where, there's no one to provide information for both sides of the argument, well at least provide the same level of screaming. And so, in our market, the information that gets spread is the information that gets screamed the loudest. The ones that scream the loudest are typically ones with scary messages or lots of money. That makes middle market, where you may have the best product, but the smallest voice, a tough place to be.
