Virginia Postrel examines free trade zones and the history of the US. Read her NYT article for the entire bit: Economic Scene: U.S. Is a Case Study in Free Trade.
Those who didn’t snooze the entire time during high school (or college) history will remember that each state was an individual nation, once upon a time. The creation of our republic created, in essence, a giant free trade zone.
It’s worked pretty well for us. Perhaps it will work for others as well?