The tragedy of the anti-commons is a useful concept for understanding a prevalent type of government
failure in both poor and rich countries–excessive permit and licensing
requirements. A pervasive multiple licensing system can create an
impenetrable conjunctive permission line that even the most energetic
cannot overcome. To start a business, to build, to hire, to sell, you
need first to convince bureaucrat A and B and C and D and so on. The
longer the conjunctive line, the less frequently entrepreneurs enter the
market with new products and services. The transaction costs for
dealing with each bureaucrat are very high, as is the likelihood that
any single one will say no. The upshot is an impoverished society. To
take one example, in medieval times, barons who owned parcels of land
along the Rhine River collected tolls from each ship that passed by. As a
result, few ships sailed down the Rhine.
