Why not just let businesses compete? 为何不直接让企业自由竞争？

Isn't that also the best for us if they compete freely, 对我们来说企业自由竞争不是更好吗，

since more competition drives more quality, lower prices, more innovation? 因为竞争越激烈，产品质量就越高，价格也会降低，创新性更高。

Well, mostly it is. But the problem is that sometimes, for businesses, competition can be inconvenient, 大多数情况下是这样。但问题是，有时在企业间竞争会是个阻碍，

because competition means that the race is never over, the game is never won. 因为竞争永远持续着，没有结束的一天。

No matter how well you were doing in the past, there's always someone who are out there wanting to take your place. 不论你过去表现多好，总有某些人虎视耽耽想取代你。

So the temptation to avoid competition is powerful. 所以，避免竞争的诱惑十分强大。

It's rooted in motives as old as Adam and Eve: 这种深深植入人心的诱惑和亚当夏娃一样古老：

in greed for yet more money, in fear of losing your position in the market and all the benefits it brings. 贪婪更多财富，害怕失去在市场的地位和它带来的所有好处。

And when greed and fear are linked to power, you have a dangerous mix. 当贪婪和恐惧与权力扯上关系，就很危险了。

We see that in political life. 这在政治中很常见。

In part of the world, the mix of greed and fear means that those who get power become reluctant to give it back. 在世上某处，贪婪和恐惧的组合意味着表示拥有权力的人不愿将权力交给他人。

One of the many things I like and admire in our democracies are the norms that make our leaders hand over power when voters tell them to. 在我们的民主制度中，我喜欢并钦佩的诸多优点之一，就是规定选民可决定领导人是否该交出权力。

And competition rules can do a similar thing in the market, making sure that greed and fear doesn't overcome fairness. 在市场中，竞争规范有着相似的作用，它确保贪婪和恐惧不会威胁到公平性。

Because those rules mean that companies cannot misuse their power to undermine competition. 因为这些规范意味着公司不可滥用权力破坏竞争。