I just paid my automobile insurance

I got a letter delivered to my house, plus an email a month ago.   Then reminder emails every few days.  As the contract deadline approached I decided it was time to pay up.  I'm going to log into the web site and pay my insurance premium. Then, I saw the 1-800 number.  Give it shot.  Maybe, Maybe 90 seconds and I've paid my bill for another six months.  Astoundingly easy, convenient, I love how they go out of their way to please me.  A confirmation email arrives before I hang up the phone.  This is perfectly easy.


I don't want to advertise for them because acronymically they represent government employees, but I'm amazed at what has just happened.  I've paid money to a service provider that I employee, from my bank to their bank, electronically, using software created by other parties.  Myself, the insurance company, the banks, all communicating almost instantaneously across networks created by others and offered for useful exchange, exchanging money safely, all because of our wonderful Capitalistic system of voluntary cooperation.

Amidst this honeycomb of cooperative happiness exist tyrants sticking their thieving little hands into the system in order to extract some booty unearned.  Money regulations, Credit Card laws, Internet overseers, Bank inspectors - but Free Men find a way.

Would, could such convenience have been created by a Monopoly ?