Market anarchism can be confusing! Markets have traditionally been considered an intrinsic component of neoliberal capitalism; therefore, many socialists consider them to be inherently coercive. However, this is a grave misconception. Many socialists point to the Industrial Revolution as an example of  “free markets gone awry.” That is to say, these were times of low wages and child labor and many blame the market for this. Child labor is not necessarily a trait of the free market; however, it is a trait found in many developing nations. In fact, the child laborers who worked in the most dangerous professions and who were paid the lowest amount were wards of the state. In Great Britain the poorest children were sent to what some might call “orphanages” and what most would call “prisons.” Instead of outward aid going to poor families in the form of welfare, a new system would replace this aid with “poorhouses.” This was known as “The Poor Law.” Children at these houses had no other option but to sell themselves to the owners of capital, or starve. When people began to realize that these children were being abused and often killed on the job, they pushed for more government regulation of business—a controlled market. It is obvious that the original problem was caused, not by markets, but by the state itself, so a regulatory solution was  the different side to the same coin.