Intrepid legal researcher Sheldon Gilbert sends me:

Law prof Nate Oman has an interesting post titled "Three Defenses of Markets The first two defenses are pretty standard – markets are good because (1) they allocate resources more efficiently than social institutions (the "efficiency" argument), and (2) they are a "locus of choice" (the "libertarian" argument). But Oman raises a third, really intriguing defense of markets that he calls the "pluralism argument" –

...commerce encourages courage, honesty, and fidelity. It encourages cooperation rather than predation. It allows people with widely disparate views of the ultimate ends and purposes of life to peacefully cooperate with one another. Commerce rewards the frugal and the farsighted, while punishing the wastrel and the spendthrift. Commerce produces wealth that then allows the pursuit of good things otherwise not possible. (On this last one, don’t think "economic efficiency." Think Venice and the beautiful art and architecture that its commerce made possible.)