Economics: The Value of "Price Gouging"

[DBTrek]

Where it existed naturally, I have no trouble with raising prices. Can you not process that point and move the fuck on, bot? You are stuck in a non-terminal while loop, it seems.

It naturally exists in venues with limited seating and in disaster areas where governments pass anti-gouging laws. So if you have no problem with raising prices where scarcity all ready exists we’re on the same page. I have no idea why you’re even mad.

[DBTrek]

From that notorious evil-doer, Walter Block.

From Part IV of Defending the Undefendable, "Outlaw." Read by Jeff Riggenbach. [14:20]

Good stuff. Does not shy away from the actual crux of the problem which infuriates so many ... the fact that scalping benefits the middle class and rich who do not have the idle time to wait in lines for tickets (or hit refresh a thousand times on the TicketMaster site). That’s the actual issue underlying most of the rage - rich people have more access to scarce goods due to their wealth. Welcome to a monetary system.
/shrug

[Speaker to Animals]

scalping only benefits the scalper. He did not increase actual supply, only prices.

the real crux of the matter is that some folks derive their sense of right and wrong from money.

Which in ye olden days was called Mammon worship.

Also the type of shit that got you bull-whipped by God.

[DBTrek]

I’m sure some people do, I’ve never been one of them. I have been a long time fan of examining systems and how they function though. Probably because I learned early on that most people have extremely emotional reactions to systems, and hold completely skewed views. It isn’t until the system is analyzed that truth can be separated from emotion.

Whether it’s the economy, the criminal justice system, or our immigration system ... a lot of people are operating off of factoids and feelings. The only way to avoid being one of them is to do your best to learn and understand the actual systems and how they operate.

[Speaker to Animals]

What is your solution to gougers creating artificial scarcity of necessities in order to gouge victims of a disaster?

Other than "that cannot happen", which I have shown numerous examples proving it happens all the time in lots of markets, without disaster, and we create regulations and various mechanisms (like a market maker) to restrain it.

No amount of repeating your script answers this simple question.

[Fife]

scalping only benefits the scalper. He did not increase actual supply, only prices.

the real crux of the matter is that some folks derive their sense of right and wrong from money.

Which in ye olden days was called Mammon worship.

Also the type of shit that got you bull-whipped by God.

Wherein we are once again given a sightseeing tour aboard the USS Unlimited Supply all the way over to Fantasy Island.

The FreeBubbleUp Cafe over at Big Rock Candy Mountain is waiting for you, Mr. Victim McHobo.

Here's a quick list of who benefits (everyone) from "scalping," also known as voluntary trade:

1. Teams / Event Promoters: Pre-sale of tickets at the fixed face value (which promoters have many reasons to set under actual market price) allows for predictable and early sales; as well as money in the bank earning interest. Scalpers benefit promoters by absorbing the time risk (future losing streak, LeBron gets hurt, polar vortex, &c, &c.)

2. Season Ticket Holders: They are able to sell off single game tickets in the normal event of something else coming up.

3. Single-event Customers: Reduction in unwanted or impossible planning ahead to get in line; also being able to go to an event at all in the extremely likely event that a prospective customer cannot reasonably afford to take off on a work day at 6AM to go sit in a ticket line.

That's off the top of my head; there's enough out there to read to last many hours. For example, there is a LOT more on this subject in the short Walter Block audiobook clip I posted. Or one can keep on dreaming of the fantasy of unlimited supply.

[Fife]

What is your solution to gougers creating artificial scarcity of necessities in order to gouge victims of a disaster?

Other than "that cannot happen", which I have shown numerous examples proving it happens all the time in lots of markets, without disaster, and we create regulations and various mechanisms (like a market maker) to restrain it.

No amount of repeating your script answers this simple question.

"Creating artificial scarcity" is a acid-trip-level construction in the context of "anti-gouging" or "anti-scalping" laws.

No amount of repeating your script changes objective reality.

End of story, bro. Finis.

[DBTrek]

"Creating artificial scarcity" is a acid-trip-level construction in the context of "anti-gouging" or "anti-scalping" laws.

No amount of repeating your script changes objective reality.

End of story, bro. Finis.

Monopolies can create artificial scarcity, but I’ve yet to see the example of ticket scalpers doing it. We ever have a ticket scalper buy every single ticket and resell them for more than the accumulated face value costs? I’ve never heard of that happening.

[Fife]

I wish we could get normies to get as pissed off and frothy about pharma patents (and IP law in general) as they do about actually beneficial activities like "gouging" and "scalping."

Talk about artificially constricting supply, sheesh. (Also note that kind of monopolistic fuckery is *only possible* because of the state. )

Why isn't there a good scare word like "gouging" for state-sponsored medical robbery?

[Speaker to Animals]

What is your solution to gougers creating artificial scarcity of necessities in order to gouge victims of a disaster?

Other than "that cannot happen", which I have shown numerous examples proving it happens all the time in lots of markets, without disaster, and we create regulations and various mechanisms (like a market maker) to restrain it.

No amount of repeating your script answers this simple question.

"Creating artificial scarcity" is a acid-trip-level construction in the context of "anti-gouging" or "anti-scalping" laws.

No amount of repeating your script changes objective reality.

End of story, bro. Finis.

It's the actual problem. I realize it's off-script for you, but that's the issue I would like addressed before we repeal anti-gouging laws for the welfare of the people.

The fact that you got nothing should have told you enough about your position.

This type of shit happens all the time. Everywhere, we implement various regulations and mechanisms to keep it from happening, not just during emergencies. If it weren't a problem, then NASDAQ wouldn't have designated market movers, states wouldn't have laws against ticket scalping, and there wouldn't be regulations regarding how much a drug company can fuck people over with their pharmaceutical patents.

Then here you clowns are acting all surprised anybody would bring this up. Please. It's not impressive.


Pro-tip: http://www.investorwords.com/1128/corne ... arket.html

That's what gouging does. It's illegal everywhere else. But you want to make it legal precisely when the stakes (people's lives) are highest. You should actually have to defend that position. But you don't. The script does not address any of this. You need to address it.

All forms of gouging come down to manipulating supply, usually by exploiting low liquidity or a temporarily restricted market area, but sometimes by trying to corner the entire fucking global market as the Hunt brothers tried to do back in '80. Markets generally try to preempt it and setup mechanisms to inhibit it. But somehow that shouldn't be the case for water and gasoline in a fucking disaster?? Get over yourselves and answer this shit.