Internal corporate politics don't contradict the ideas of free markets. It's just that there's complex signalling going on (which an outsider can't be privy to) that erects barriers to entry.
These barriers are beneficial to the individuals, but don't help the corporation - a typical Agency Problem. Same thing with government : a huge corporation with monopolistic rights, and no profit motive.
>Internal corporate politics don't contradict the ideas of free markets.
I don't follow. Are you claiming that internally most big corporations could be considering free markets?
Low barriers to entry are pretty essential to free markets. High barriers discourage competition and encourage monopolies. See Microsoft, AT&T, Google.
"Free market" is a relative term, but it would be hard to describe the internal workings of most companies that way.
When I read the GPs complaint about free markets, I took it to mean that this situation was proof that free market ideas are invalid. To counter this, I was trying to say that people themselves (through creating barriers) are deliberately undermining the free market idea.
Now I see that it can be read to imply that the US (the land of free markets) isn't really so competitive after all (hence the 'legend'). True enough.
These barriers are beneficial to the individuals, but don't help the corporation - a typical Agency Problem. Same thing with government : a huge corporation with monopolistic rights, and no profit motive.