The world-view implied by Political Reductionism is a dreary one indeed, containing a number of dubious assumptions:

• Governmental compulsion is assumed to be the only means by which human beings accomplish their purposes. In particular, the voluntary processes of the free market, which were explored in detail in Section 4, are either overlooked or are assumed to be devoid of human purpose. Political reductionists scorn the "random vagaries of the marketplace" and the "impersonal forces of the market"; only through political action (i. e., mass compulsion) can the "will of the people" find expression.

• Governmental laws and regulations are assumed always to have their intended effects—and only those effects.

• Coercive policies, it is assumed, will have no negative general effects on the moral climate of a society, because morality is defined only through political policy.

Each of the above assumptions, of course, should be subjected to careful analysis with regard to any proposed policy. Political reductionism, however, skirts these issues entirely.     

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