There is nothing left down here to buy:
Plywoood
Concrete Screws
Water
Gas
Generators
Ice
Etc.
I blame this on our state's anti-gouging laws. There's an old adage -- I believe attributable to the great economist Walter Williams -- "If there is a shortage of something, the price is too low".
After this storm, I am going to make a proposal to our Governor. Keep your damn anti-gouging laws in place. But do this:
We have many huge open-space county parks here. When a storm looks imminent, open them up as "Free Market Gouging Zones" -- this way, no one will be surprised (or allowed to complain) about anyone's prices. Pay or don't. Allow anyone with a semi, box truck, or even U-Haul to sell anything they want at any price tax free (i.e. easy cash transactions) within one of these zones.
And watch the market perform its magic. Trucks filled with loot will come from everywhere, looking to make an "outrageous" profit.
Very quickly, there will be more goods available than people to buy them. They'll be giving stuff away for free.
Bank on it.
Plywoood
Concrete Screws
Water
Gas
Generators
Ice
Etc.
I blame this on our state's anti-gouging laws. There's an old adage -- I believe attributable to the great economist Walter Williams -- "If there is a shortage of something, the price is too low".
After this storm, I am going to make a proposal to our Governor. Keep your damn anti-gouging laws in place. But do this:
We have many huge open-space county parks here. When a storm looks imminent, open them up as "Free Market Gouging Zones" -- this way, no one will be surprised (or allowed to complain) about anyone's prices. Pay or don't. Allow anyone with a semi, box truck, or even U-Haul to sell anything they want at any price tax free (i.e. easy cash transactions) within one of these zones.
And watch the market perform its magic. Trucks filled with loot will come from everywhere, looking to make an "outrageous" profit.
Very quickly, there will be more goods available than people to buy them. They'll be giving stuff away for free.
Bank on it.