mr.72 wrote:Being poor doesn't change the basic economics. Of course some people will be priced out of the product entirely. That's unfortunate and that's an opportunity for those with greater means to provide for others by means of their own charity.
I am not speaking exclusively of the "poor". The Bible is clear on that point:
"The poor are with us always...". I am talking about those with fixed or marginal incomes...that are able to "make it" under ordinary circumstances, but are cast into suffrage when taxed by inflated prices during a time of trouble.
Let's take your single mom with three kids scenario. Say she's trying to flee the hurricane, and realistically before the hurricane gas was $3.50 per gallon and during evacuation it goes up to $7 per gallon (I am guessing, I wasn't there, who knows how high it went). Likewise a hotel room before the hurricane was $50 and during evacuation, let's say it's $100.
So the single mom, trying to evacuate, has $100 to spend. Free shelters are available in Austin and that's less than 200 miles away. This is enough money to get to the free shelter, and if she brings food, she will get there with her children fed. The free shelter is the whole idea!
This assumes a lot. The room and resources of the free shelters are finite, they do actually fill up. What if "Mom & kids" have to go to Dallas? Suppose Mom's car isn't all that great and she has to replace a tire along way (perhaps at twice the price). How do you propose to get Mom and Kids back home? Maybe her funds would have allowed for this under normal circumstances (and prices) but now she finds she can not because prices have doubled or tripled!
For people without a car, they must have some kind of arrangement worked out. Get a ride with a neighbor, family member, bus, etc. If they don't, then it is very poor planning on their part and you know, sometimes poor planning puts you in a very bad position. I am not trying to be cold but these are the simple facts.
I have stated before that I support good planning. Everyone should do so the best they can, but it remains....the ABILITY to carry out those plans should not be hindered/circumvented, by those simply seeking to profit off the misfortune of others.
This has absolutely, positively nothing whatsoever to do with economics, supply and demand, prices of commodities or anything else that is related to "price gouging". You see if the gas price is kept artificially low, then the first people arriving to buy gas are going to buy all of it that they can fit in their tank, regardless of how much they need to evacuate.
Artificially low, now thats funny! As far as filling your tank goes, I expect folks to do that. A merchant may choose to "ration" the amount he sells if he/she has any concern about motorists all getting some, but I doubt that is any concern of theirs.
Families may choose to take two cars, since they can hold more gas in two cars and they can be more comfortable traveling, and since high gas prices are not present to reduce their demand for gas, they will not have any reason not to take all they can fit. Then the gas station will RUN OUT. Then what happens to the single mother and three kids with $100? It wouldn't matter if she had $1,000,000 if there is NO GAS, then she is not going ANYWHERE.
Ummm, doesn't kind of work both ways? Gas stations are going to "run out" period. Rationing by means of inflated prices only insures that the more fortunate will be able to continue on some distance. It doesn't do the Mom much good to buy 1/4 tank of gas when her destination is 3/4 tank away. It is probably little consolation that 50 other folks "almost" made it too.
The point of the high prices is to make the limited supply last long enough to serve all of those who need the product.
No Sir, the point of greatly increased prices during times of emergency is to profit at the expense of those who have no choice but to pay your price. The limited supply will not last enough to serve everyone, instead it will serve only those with enough money to pay for all they want/need...and it further restricts the ability of those with less... to purchase what they need. Now, you don't really expect me to believe that merchants raising prices during a disaster is driven by their "want" to serve as many people as possible?
Whether you are poor or not, it doesn't matter. Certainly in fact if the prices are kept low then the poor are going to be worse off, since those who are "of means" will buy far and away more than they need, since they can afford it.
An good example of greed.
This is a humanitarian problem you are describing, a charity problem, certainly a problem that churches and neighbors and families should be able to address, but it is not an economic problem, nor is it a government problem, unless you are a socialist!
I can assure you, there is not a socialist bone in my body. But I do view this as a temporary economic problem as well as a humanitarian problem. The problem with dispensing humanitarian help is the large scale in which it is needed by those fleeing a hurricane, the transient nature of the exodus, the unfamiliarity of the people to know where to go for help, and the short time frame in which the help is needed. In others words, humanitarian efforts can only go so far and are all the more taxed when folks pockets are emptied by merchants trying to make that extra buck!
And I mean it, this idea that the poor person should have the same quantity of gas and hotels as the wealthy during an evacuation is the core of socialism.
Again, I am not speaking of only the "poor". No one I have seen up here is looking for a "hand out" or special favors. They simply want to maintain whatever means (financially) they had BEFORE the storm to flee it. Instead, they are having to make certain funds stretch further than it is possible to do because everyone for hundreds of miles has jacked up their prices. If prices were kept nearly the same, then everyone has the same ability as before to secure a way out. Then it becomes a matter of good planning and circumstance.
No one is asking for a hand-out, they just don't want to be raped (financially) in the name of "business/economics".
Hey, "business is business" right?
