I didn't see the free market concept doesn't work. I said the efficient markets assumption is invalid. If you assume a rational actor you can make certain strong statements about the free market's ability to reach efficient equilibrium on its own. That's where the neigh-religious "if we just leave it be, the invisible hand will guide the market" talk comes from. Once we abandon the idea that people behave rationally, and the behavioral economics research we've seen over the last couple of decades forces us to abandon that idea, we can no longer make such strong statements. The "invisible hand" is leading us somewhere, but it's not necessarily to an efficient or even a stable equilibrium. We're forced into the morass of having to justify policy on its own merits, instead of invoking the religion of efficient markets.

Similarly, the concept of democracy does work, but the problem is that it's reliant on an educated citizenry, which is unfortunately fading fast in the US.