I also don't buy the idea that China is unable to police its companies, the reality is tht it is unwilling to set standards and hold their companies accountable to them.

DINGDING! You are correct, sir. Holding the companies to rules would cut into their profits - profits which go nearly directly into the pockets of the gov't officials who would be responsible for enforcing said rules, if they existed. Good thing we don't have that problem under our system...

Although my concern is with medications-generic kinds that are often the insurance companies preferred brand or I get stuck with a tons higher bill.

I also don't buy the idea that China is unable to police its companies, the reality is tht it is unwilling to set standards and hold their companies accountable to them.

If you're looking to me for a defense of survival of the fittest, laissez-faire capitalism, red in tooth and claw, you're looking at the wrong guy. I think the challenge is in drawing the line on the level of regulation not in whether there should be regulation or not.

No disagreement from me, but there are, you know, more than a few libertarians online. Try telling the fine folk at Cato and Reason that laissez fair capitalism doesn't work worth a damn. In fact give them a mountain of evidence of the same they'll still squawk "free market" like a bunch of trained parrots.

Everyone who actually trumpets true 'no-holds-barred' free marketism is either a moron who doesn't think their blessed market philosophy will ever be corrupted by people who have different philosophies, or they're bald liars who really only want money and have no morals at all about what they say or do to get it.

Or they've redefined “free market” to include the constraints they like.

I think the challenge is in drawing the line on the level of regulation not in whether there should be regulation or not.

Indeed, Dave. Everyone who actually trumpets true 'no-holds-barred' free marketism is either a moron who doesn't think their blessed market philosophy will ever be corrupted by people who have different philosophies, or they're bald liars who really only want money and have no morals at all about what they say or do to get it. Pure systems don't actually exist in the real world.

For similar reasons, I'd like to think that Bush's tenure will be looked back on as the final proof that supply-side economics is just another ponzi scam, but I also hoped that the last time we had Republicans in the WH too...

The Chinese government has itself said that it doesn’t have the ability to keep track of the hundreds of thousands or millions of companies in the country.

Ah, a double dose of irony.
1) a nominally communist company demonstrates greater laissez fair capitalism
2) said demonstration only goes to prove why truly free market capitalism fails spectacularly

quite the hoot! :)