antitrust and the rule of man
This article by S.M. Oliva makes clear the ridiculousness and hypocrisy of antitrust law. Collusion is perfectly natural and accepted for some groups, such as NBA players, public school teachers, and manufacturing company employees. But others get sued and fined for doing essentially the same thing, because it's "price-fixing" or the like.
Collusion and cartels are not bad. If they cause pain to some segment of the population, that segment no longer has to associate themselves or their wealth with the cartel members, and the cartel will weaken.
Unless, of course, you live in the United States, you're a company owner, and the cartel you're talking about is your employee union. Then you're screwed.
But back to the main point—this is another example of where "rule of man" has replaced "rule of law," exactly as F. A. Hayek predicted in The Road to Serfdom. Where government bureaucrats (such as those at the FTC) get to pick which types of "colluders" get prosecuted and which don't, the rule of law is gone, and so is liberty.