Comment by gnfargbl

The reason that I think rule-of-law will always be important to entrepreneurs is that if you don't have those things, then you're always at risk of the King taking what is "his" and you being left with nothing to show for all your efforts. In England, this problem led to the basic foundation of our democracy. The primary aim of the Magna Carta was for the Barons of the land to inform King John that yes, he was also subject to the law, and no, he couldn't just imprison them and confiscate their lands at will.

I do agree on Singapore, though. It's an interesting case in that the benevolent dictatorship offers most of the advantages of Western democracies in terms of a law-based contract between rulers and the ruled, but with (arguably) a more solid promise of long-term social stability. There's definitely a chance that we all end up in that situation.