The options for work are much greater in such a diverse situation only because there are multiple producers, consumers and goods at different levels of the market. I must reiterate, however, that the horrific abuse of human life witnessed in colonial Potosí was not the lynchpin in this efficient market, but perhaps the path of least resistance towards great and rapid development. However, it was this myopic strategy of the Spanish that not only decimated Vanessa’s ancestors but also left Vanessa stranded in poverty hundreds of years later. Had the Spanish established a more sustainable social model that looked beyond the ransacking of the mountain towards the future of the city, the market they created could have eventually provided Vanessa and her family with the opportunity for profit they need to move down off the mountain and stabilize their economic situation, thereby improving their standard of living.
Similarly, developing countries like Bolivia must be able to descend from their isolated mountains and participate in global markets in order to boost earnings and strengthen their economies. This is not to say that the exploitation of labourers should be encouraged; that comes from avarice, not a search for wealth. What should be noted is that the profit itself is crucial for economic stabilization and that Vanessa and her country are not wrong to seek a secure financial situation. Profit, therefore, is not only necessary but also morally justifiable as a means to improve economic conditions on an individual, national and international level.