I owned and operated a gas station on 9/11. Shortly after the attack, I got a call from my fuel distributor telling me to double my price on gas. I told him I had 20k gallons in the ground and saw no reason to raise the price on something that had already been paid for. Most other stations around me did raise their prices. I didn't, and needless to say my store was packed. There was a half-mile long line of cars waiting to get gas. Millions of people trying to buy gas and other staples crashed the credit card system nationwide. This was dial-up days and I was unable to get a single transaction thru my terminal (which was inside, pay at the pump was still new). I had to put a sign outside to inform people that we could only accept cash. People lost their minds and accused me of taking advantage of the tragedy. Many Americans believe individually owned businesses should be under the thumb of bureaucratic legislation. I even got letters from city hall accusing me of price gouging and threatening me with charges for something that never happened.

@EileenTheCr0w

5 жыл бұрын

How greedy of you to not just give the gas away for free at that point. Seriously though, these people don't understand basic economics and just want to point the finger elsewhere instead of thinking.

@marcgrundfest1495

5 жыл бұрын

Next time just close. It's safer. Plus if gas stays high you will never be able to resupply. Best to close.. Wait it out.. Then you can sell at the new market rate with impunity. Don't be a fool... You were lucky you did not have a roit..

@mattlane2282

5 жыл бұрын

Ya really best to close... when we had sandy, fuel prices were unchanged prior to the storm I was hearing from oil companies, supply would be iffy... I was filling up 55 gallon drums... could not lose, no way the fuel price was going to go DOWN... lol

@worsethanjoerogan8061

5 жыл бұрын

People who talk about price gouging don't understand economics. Just because the price of gas was X before a hurricane hit doesn't mean that's the price that it should be during a hurricane, where demand for gasoline RIGHT NOW increases dramatically. If vendors didn't raise prices to react to that demand, the people who got there later would get no gas because it would all be sold. The high prices actually help resources get distributed more effectively, in this case people would see the high price and only buy enough gas to get them out of the immediate disaster area, where they could purchase more fuel at a better price. If you don't raise prices they will just fill up their tank and leave others stranded.

@rogerwilcojr

5 жыл бұрын

Maybe if you raised your price people would just buy what they need to get through the emergency rather than fill up their tanks and several jerry cans so that there is not enough fuel to go around.

When you go to a movie theater you pay $5 for a bottle of water. But when you need water, the government won't let you pay $3 for a bottle. LOL.

@InternetKilledTV21

5 жыл бұрын

This is like first grade all over again. Want vs. need. You can survive a movie without bottled water since you'll have access to drinkable water later, as well as water fountains (required by law) in the same facility with clean drinking water. When you have sewage in your water--or it's somehow contaminated--making it undrinkable for hundreds of miles around there's a big difference.

@mehrshadvr4

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah but you can buy cheaper one outside of movie theater. Can you buy cheaper water in your State?

@willhoren9200

5 жыл бұрын

@@InternetKilledTV21 So, if I had to drive hundreds of miles to obtain water, then reenter a disaster zone, drive hundreds of additional miles, and I wouldn't even be entitled to cover my costs? No thanks, I won't sell. My family lives, yours doesn't.

@EileenTheCr0w

5 жыл бұрын

And a first grader would also know that the more people want something, the harder it is to get. You're asking people to do additional work to bring in a product you need, but aren't willing to pay them anything extra for it? Well congratulations, instead of choosing between sewage and expensive water, you now just get sewage.

@caseyjc5

5 жыл бұрын

And when someone else needs water, if you have more money than them then the government may make you pay for it.

There’s room for both views I think. The guy selling generators travelled 600 miles, rented a Uhaul, placed the generators in the truck, on his own time, and took the risk. He cannot sell the generators at cost, that’s dumb. What was the price he should have charged ? And it’s insane that he was imprisoned and the generators confiscated. I would ask Trump to pardon him and reimburse him. Same idiocy in Puerto Rico after the hurricane. Electricity could have been restored relatively quickly but liberals complained and the contractors packed up and went home. Puerto Rico went months without power because of it.

@anarcoyote1207

5 жыл бұрын

Katrina happened in 2005. Unless Trump has a DeLorean, I don't think he can pardon the guy since he (hopefully) would have been released from jail over a decade ago.

@mehrshadvr4

5 жыл бұрын

President can pardon people for federal crimes only.

@MilwaukeeF40C

5 жыл бұрын

An out of town U Haul rental costs an assrape.

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

+Art Curious There's not room enough for the anti-"gougers", they're like the science deniers of the economics world. The more free our markets, the more our people will flourish.

@toofar7493

5 жыл бұрын

He should have charged regular price on the generators but charged and shipping and handling fee to comp his costs.

If he successfully sold the 19 generators at 2X retail cost, wouldn't that be incentive for others to get a truck and undersell him, reducing the cost to the consumers? What happened to him? Was he charged with a crime?

@bspeers76

5 жыл бұрын

Yes, that's exactly right. High prices incentivize increased supply, which is precisely what is desperately needed during an emergency.

@worsethanjoerogan8061

5 жыл бұрын

Yep it's the market at work. High prices indicate a shortage compared to demand, so it makes it desirable for others to spend money and resources to get the supply to the demand. This increased supply will drop prices down to "normal" levels.

@gblargg

5 жыл бұрын

Rudy, they don't teach this in school, but prices and the market are a system for communicating about supply, demand, cost of production, how much people want things, etc. Profit is just the signal that something is giving value to people, as opposed to wasteful activities that don't actually help people. It's sad that people violently try to force others to do things that squander helping people.

@Fater4511

5 жыл бұрын

he had to rent a truck and drive them into the area. that costs uhaul rental, fuel for truck and time/labor on his part. all valid reasons for a markup.

@outofbluepills

5 жыл бұрын

Rudy King says, "It's sad that it takes profits to make people help out." During the last hurricane, did YOU, Rudy, go rent a U-Haul, fill it up with thousands of dollars of gas, water, batteries, and generators. Did YOU take an expensive interstate drive with it into a disaster zone? Of course not. You bemoan the fact that OTHER people aren't motivated by altruism. When it comes to YOU, sitting on your ass while others suffer is just fine. It's sad that irrational hatred of profits motivates leftists to prevent people from helping out.

Uber does it when they have the so called Surge. I don't see anyone getting locked up for it.

@Bc232klm

5 жыл бұрын

They give free rides in times of crisis, dumbass.

@mattlane2282

5 жыл бұрын

price gouging is not only during times of crisis? do you know wtf that term even means... If they are raising the price because of something... lets just call it price gouging why not...

@rwbimbie5854

5 жыл бұрын

Why do people PAY the high surge price for a ride or $20 gallon for water? Why not just skip the ride or the water due to the insane price hikes? People in need of a ride or water will pay abusive prices for it. Unlike the actual cost of renting a truck and transporting generators being on top of regular generator price, Uber Rides do not cost drivers more to give at 5pm but price goes up... UBER SURGE GOUGING

@newtonmigosi5277

5 жыл бұрын

@@rwbimbie5854 you should learn some economics, when the price goes up it's a signal to other producers that there's high demand and that it's profitable to produce In the example of uber surges it just means that more people want a ride, if there are 50 cabs and 100 hailers it makes more sense to raise the price since the resource is scarce... and remember you don't have to pay them, if you can find a cheaper alternative then just go for it...that way only those who really need it get the scarce resource The guiding philosophy of libertarianism is non-agression, you have no right to demand a car ride from an uber driver, they're not your slaves...if you don't like it don't buy it

@rwbimbie5854

5 жыл бұрын

Basic economics say we should simply accept $1 water being $20 during hurricanes and $8 on hot days. The POINT is that if we punish one price hiker then we need to punish ALL of them. Water, Uber, Pawnshops & TowTrucks EXPLOIT desperation- there is no reason to punish one and not the others

Claiming to be smarter than a politician because you have a more effective policy, falsely assumes that the politician's motivation is to solve problems.

@forrestputman7617

5 жыл бұрын

Well....? Politicians incessantly claim to have solutions but they are actually part of the problem

@bspeers76

5 жыл бұрын

You are smarter (or at least more ethical) than a politician if you don't want to be one.

@hobbes2555

5 жыл бұрын

Government: If you think our problems are bad, wait until you see our solutions!

Libertarian teachers are few and far between... for now.

@charltonblake9967

5 жыл бұрын

only the smart ones

@matbroomfield

5 жыл бұрын

That's because most 10 year olds can see through the lunacy of a hard line libertarian position.

@wyhdjdbnbdhdjmx5552

5 жыл бұрын

A libertarian, economics professor changed my life my sophomore year of college. Thanks to him, I found a subject that I was fascinated by, that I could relate to everyday life. My love for economics led me to get involved in politics, and to eventually land an internship and full-time job.

@peterpan8263

5 жыл бұрын

RyeOnHam Take the time to read this article and so can figure out what effect there looking for www.nytimes.com/2017/08/15/books/review/democracy-in-chains-nancy-maclean.html Nancy Mac clean democracy in chains New York Times article Even James Buchanan denounce the Koch brothers and he came up with this ideology these are just crazy people who hate America Democracy & won’t rule by the elitist

@doorran

5 жыл бұрын

I had communist and socialist teachers ... and that was the 70's.

Thomas Sowell should be required reading for every student

@maeldirzol8381

5 жыл бұрын

and Milton Freedman

@peterpan8263

5 жыл бұрын

RyeOnHam Take the time to read this article and so can figure out what effect there looking for www.nytimes.com/2017/08/15/books/review/democracy-in-chains-nancy-maclean.html Nancy Mac clean democracy in chains New York Times article Even James Buchanan denounce the Koch brothers and he came up with this ideology these are just crazy people who hate America Democracy & won’t rule by the elitist

@ROGER2095

5 жыл бұрын

And every citizen.

@brad5696

5 жыл бұрын

Just not hayak. Man licked way too many pinochet balls to be called a good teacher.

@peterpan8263

5 жыл бұрын

ROGER2095 not in this country may be in Communist Russia but not here

The price of anything is determined by the buyer. (Unless they're forced by government or criminals, who are a lot alike in that regard.) In a free market, the buyer will determine the value of everything, not the seller. Let a seller charge whatever they want. The only people who buy will be those who think it's worth it.

@lawrencemiller3829

5 жыл бұрын

There is not much difference between socialists, democratic socialists, and corpratists. They both want similar self-serving unfair things. 1. Subsidies. In form the taxes and fees. 2. Indemnification. They cannot be held liable for their actions or results. 3. Oppression of competition. Socialists want more than corpratists, socialists want to control all means of production, including the people. 4. Force selling of products and services. Again, socialists are worse wanting to be end-all be-all for the people by force. Corpratists usually settle for regulations mandating their products.

@ROGER2095

5 жыл бұрын

Lawrence Miller - I've never heard the term "corpratist," but I assume from context that it's derogatory and pertains to people who run corporations. Correct? You say they want "unfair" things. What does unfair mean? Specifically. Yes - A corporation wants little or no competition. Who doesn't? The only people who want a level playing field are the ones who are losing due to competition. It's true that businesses want monopolies but, and there's the beauty of capitalism, nobody can have a monopoly without permission from the government. Sears was once the world's largest store. Then Kmart cut into their business by doing a better job. Then Walmart beat them both by doing a better job. Now Amazon is on track to beat them all. And someday someone will outsmart Amazon and everyone will shop there. None of them had a monopoly. But they all wanted it. The problem is NOT with corporations acting in their own best interest. A business will succeed or fail depending on how well they recognize and serve the needs of their customers, and those corporations who succeed are the ones benefiting their customers. The problem is politicians. The disgusting, obnoxious, repulsive truth is that there are lowlife, pile-of-manure politicians who, for money, will pass laws to limit competition in favor of one business or industry. The remedy - if you can't remove the lowlife politicians - is to remove or severely restrict the government's ability to regulate business. The less the government is involved with business, the better it is for everyone. But the lowlife politician will never give up that power because they derive money by granting exceptions for favored businesses. You hear them use the term "loophole" as if some sneaky lawyer found a way around a law. Nope - Those loopholes are part of the law - on purpose - to benefit one particular business or industry.

@mehrshadvr4

5 жыл бұрын

@@ROGER2095 lol if it wasn't for progressive era , America would be owned by only a few people already.

If you don't want to buy a generator at twice the price then don't.

@ryanduray1

5 жыл бұрын

The value of an item is however much someone is willing to pay for it.

@danh2716

5 жыл бұрын

So in that case, you would find it moral if insulin would only sell for $5 million a dose? I mean, most people won't be "willing" to pay for it, but the few that do will more than make up for it...

@nobodymatters3294

5 жыл бұрын

@@danh2716 in that case another person would come along selling insulin for 2 million. And another for 1 million. And another for half a million. And another for a quarter of a million. And another for hundred grand. Etc. . . They all have to lower their prices trying to sell to the consumer

@andrew-paulclements1502

5 жыл бұрын

If no one is gonna buy their shit cause its too expensive, they aren't gonna make any money, or they would make more money by selling it at a lower prince to more people. That's not including the high probability of "Hey, that son of a B**** is cheating those people out of insulin, I'm gonna produce some and sell it at a lower more affordable price" and the person who sells at an affordable price will probably make a fortune while the person selling it at 5 million would probably go out of business. its not moral, but its not a reason to bring in the government since no one was aggressed upon. Really its just a person being a Greedy Dumb*** and that person would soon learn that just because it costs a lot and people want insulin... doesn't mean thats how you earn money

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

@@danh2716 the important thing to realize is that it's their insulin. You're welcome to make your own insulin but you are not allowed to take someone else's. nor is it right to use the power of government to force other people to sell for a price that they don't want to sell for. The answer to this is the free market and other people coming in and competing and as others have said the only effective monopolies are government granted monopolies.

Socialism: Let's All Starve Together!

@majermike

3 жыл бұрын

yay

@damiangrouse4564

2 жыл бұрын

The problem is that the people in control of those governments aren’t included in that.

"The basic and crucial political issue of our age is: capitalism versus socialism, or freedom versus statism. For decades, this issue has been silenced, suppressed, evaded, and hidden under the foggy, undefined rubber-terms of “conservatism” and “liberalism” which had lost their original meaning and could be stretched to mean all things to all men." ~ Ayn Rand, Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, 178

@adamhaynes9771

5 жыл бұрын

@DER WÄCHTER Russia murdered 25 million of its own people. And took their money and distributed to the rest of the people. Yeah that system worked out great for everyone except the 25 million. Moron

@urielseptim9860

5 жыл бұрын

DER WÄCHTER No. Just, no. Man is corrupt therefore socialism can never work power must be distributed among the people that is the only way.

@urielseptim9860

5 жыл бұрын

If we are speaking respectively of internal affairs America pales in comparison to the crimes against humanity committed under virtually every socialist/communist regime in history. If we look at America's founding ideals of freedom for all with a 3 branch delegation of power so not 1 person is always in control and the people are running the whole show (in a perfect world) that system has been proven to work without the genocide of millions within the country. There is no comparison. People demand to be free but also demand a government so a little of both is necessary it is just a matter of keeping it balanced.

@LittleLionHaw

5 жыл бұрын

DER WÄCHTER If the Soviet Union did well under hard circumstances, then the USA is the fucking Garden of Eden. Neither ideology is perfect, but at least the West is founded on the ideal that the individual is sovereign as opposed to the collectivist group identity politics that led to the genocide of millions of innocent civilians by its own government based solely on immutable characteristics.

@MilwaukeeF40C

5 жыл бұрын

"The Soviet Union was a prosperous country for decades. It achieved significant success in science and human development." The fuck it did. They dumped shitloads of money in to a few things that they never actually ended up being real good at. Overall, everything in the union was rickety as shit for the entire existence of the union. It STILL is. "The stage of development of the American infrastructure and economy wasn't that much better at that time." HAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!!!!!!!

"Are you smarter than a politician?" Well, if you're smarter than dirt, the answer is an easy "yes."

Great book entitled economics as if people mattered

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

Sounds pretentious. The whole reason economics exist is because people matter, to themselves, and voluntary exchange is cooperation.

I found this particular episode enlightening. I also had thought it was just greed. But when you factor in the risk involved bringing products to areas that need them, as the one girl stated it’s just supply and demand.

The government should stop price gouging too Stop raising taxes Hell, lowering them would be nice Getting rid of taxes would be even better

@fss1704

5 жыл бұрын

damn yeah

On the issue of price gouging, about 25 years ago I was doing a course on economics and accounting where they had a definition of price gouging which was very easy to understand and it was clear the situation with the generators wasn't price gouging. - - Price Gouging occurs when someone dramatically raises the retail price of goods they already have in stock well above their usual retail mark up to sell it in their normal market area and a much higher price. - - Based on that definition someone who buys something they don't normally handle and ship it into an area to sell it at a profit can not be price gouging simply because it's NOT something they already have in stock, NOR is it being sold in their normal market area. The real problem with the laws like were used to hit that fellow is he wants to do what the government bureaucrats should be doing and they don't like you getting into their control space, so they convince the politicians to pass silly laws.

@jamesnewell1858

2 жыл бұрын

wrong.....what about replacement cost and money lost when the price falls and you have higher priced inventory...sheep gonna baah

@ernestbywater411

2 жыл бұрын

@@jamesnewell1858 It is EXTREMELY rare for a product to drop so dramatically in price UNLESS someone in the chain before you was seriously overpricing the product, in which case you had to be dumb to not have checked out the costs properly before hand. The few cases where a product has dropped dramatically have been where the manufacturer was going out of business because there wasn't enough business to warrant staying in business - think buggy-whip makers ten years after cars become common as a suitable situation.

Totally brilliant programme. John is a genius who says as it is. Hopefully he can share his message for many more years to come. There is more need for it now than ever.

The prices pre-crises reflect the pre-crisis level of supply and demand. In a crisis, infrastructure is hit such as roads, railways, ports, pipelines, electric, and more. Without the infrastructure the area had acclimatised to you'll see a huge reduction in supply. For example, you'll find water can no longer be provided on mass using established piping which forces people to change to inefficient methods of water transport such as bottled water. In contrast to the reduced supply, you also have a massive increase in demand as people's behaviours change to stockpiling which they see as necessary since acquiring products has become much harder. For example, if you had the capability to buy water for a day or a week you're much more likely to purchase the week's supply as you may not have another chance to acquire the water with the crises reducing supply. This easily explains why prices rise and if you can explain why it happens rationally then it's logical rather than "Evil". Of course, since supplies are vital to reestablishing lower prices we want to do everything in our power to re-establish a strong level of supply so I wouldn't be opposed to the government purchasing large quantities of goods to distribute in the affected areas. Measures against price gauging however I can only see limiting supply even more, though I'd need to do some research.

gouging, a derogatory term coined by the left for the economic law of supply and demand.

@bspeers76

5 жыл бұрын

Exactly. If people understood the importance of market-set prices as indicators to potential suppliers, they would know that high prices allow the supply to increase, whereas if prices are kept arbitrarily low through violence (i.e., government), then supply will actually dwindle. I've never understood why anyone thinks they have any right to tell a supplier that they have to charge a specific price. The goods in a store are the property of the store owner and as such it is unethical for anyone to force the seller to assign a specific price to those goods. Any sale made should be a private, violence-free negotiation between the seller and the buyer.

@InsaneNuYawka

5 жыл бұрын

Oh ok , so since you liked the content of this video it shouldn’t be free , you should pay a fee

@walterfielding9079

3 жыл бұрын

@w9j15g Exactly. Natural Disasters are unavoidable and governments institute price controls during disasters to keep order and help people remain calm. When thousands of houses are gone and hundreds of people are dead the government and victims have bigger priorities than making sure the water bottle salesman makes an extra buck. It's wrong to make someone who just watched their aunt float away in a house with all of their goods in it, to pay 25$ for a gallon of gas, or 15$ for a bottle of water. The government institutes the controls to keep order and during a disaster economic theory shouldn't be the main concern.

Get the government out of the economy.

The gentleman who purchased the generators and then at his cost transported them 600 miles during dangerous weather conditions to where they were desperately needed … should have received a community citation. The fact that he only charged twice his cost is astounding and well within the normal markup of a retail operation even during normal conditions. The same people who willingly buy fashion items for example at stratospheric markups will be the same ones screaming "price gouging" at merchants attempting to allocate their inventory of vital products and services during an emergency.

Please have a competition for young adults, I'm 24 & Canadian, give me incentive to change the vote I love you stoessel keep being the libertarian we need!!! Cheers brotha!

wish we had more of you when I was in school. Luckily My economics teacher had a few of your videos in High school.

Thank you John for being a voice of reason. This program of yours gives me hope. Critical thinking skills are sorely lacking

Meanwhile, in places like airports--heavily government-regulated places in numerous ways--gouging is in full effect at the shops and restaurants.

When a transaction is voluntary...it is fair.

We watched Stossel video's when I was in high school. Mostly in my Senior year economics class (this was when I was first discovering libertarianism) and my Econ teacher would show us his videos but would say something like, "I don't really like him" or something like that. Then I would think something like, "What are you talking about? Stossel seems like a pretty reasonable guy."

Almost like Supply and Demand in action....

Mixed feelings on the topic... I can see both sides, but do believe in the free market prevailing.

Of course they shouldn't lock him in jail but that doesn't mean his actions were completely moral.

@Bc232klm

5 жыл бұрын

This. No reason it should be illegal to do, but it doesn't mean you're not still a douche for doing so.

@veselinboyadzhiev4724

5 жыл бұрын

Yes and Libertarians always take the opposite side of the government no matter what. The worst thing is that they always think that all private entities are always morally right. And unfortunately in most cases they are not. So normal people would call out both the government and the company whilst libertarians only call out the state!

@ExPwner

5 жыл бұрын

There is nothing immoral about it either. Don't like it don't buy it.

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

His actions were completely moral and outstanding. Any time you have a voluntary trade in the market it's win-win. Both parties situation is better off. You can tell because if it wasn't they wouldn't trade.

Tax is gouging especially when you work overtime.

One of the main rules of commerce: Charge what the market will bear. People are in business to make money, above all other considerations. It's still a free country and nobody is forced to buy anything. As a businessman, if there's strong demand for the product you have, you can charge more for it. What sets market prices is the demand for the product and the availability of the product.

I dont think ill be writing that essay any time soon

I don’t think I’d call the generator guy a price gouger. It cost money to bring those generators to the disaster zone. He should be compensated. When I think of price gouging I think of sellers who are already in the area and have the supplies already, before the disaster, that all of a sudden mark them up hundreds of percent just to pocket the cash because they know they have people over a barrel. Those are gougers.

@darthhodges

5 жыл бұрын

So you're saying prices should not be circumstance sensitive. Then why do apartments in Manhattan cost several times what a larger apartment costs in New Jersey? Why does gas cost more in California than in Missouri? While I believe there is merit to your final point the reason there are few laws in place against such practices is because they haven't come up with a way to write it that it won't be misapplied, like in the case of the generator guy in this video. There are many good ideas in the world that we will never be able to make good laws out of.

@JohnDoe-nf7up

5 жыл бұрын

Mr.G honestly I have a hard time seeing the generator guy as motivated by anything but the profit.

@tulipsontheorgan

5 жыл бұрын

John Doe : So what? Now he won’t bother and either will the rest of us who don’t want to be put in jail. No generators for anyone. You like that better?

@anonymoususer20246

5 жыл бұрын

It isn't even really about the local companies. If a local gas station has 100 bottles of water and can't get more water in for 8 weeks that creates a shortage. This equals a shortage of supply while demand is high thus the costs go up. If they sell at normal rates demand will eliminate the supply and the owner will be without income for the next 8 weeks with no product to sell. Increasing the costs offsets the time that business is unable to obtain new inventory.

@lildragon6415

5 жыл бұрын

What should sellers do when a hundred people show up in various stores in an area looking to buy $200 power generators, but only 50 of them are on sale for that price? Edit: By letting stores increase prices, it allows them to increase their own purchasing power to more urgently replenish their stock of sold out generators. If they're forced to keep prices the same in the face of increased demand, then their stock will likely remain sold out until their regularly scheduled shipping dates.

I’m all for people making these arguments on price gouging (it gives more insight to the situation) but it feels like stossel’s school is more so training the one argument to the students rather than developing critical thinking skills to develop their own arguments.

Thank God there is hope for the future after all.

@CounterCultureWISE

5 жыл бұрын

@DER WÄCHTER "Resistance is futile; you will be assimilated." ... but you'll have to kill me first.

@peterpan8263

5 жыл бұрын

CounterCultureWISE Radio Okey-dokey or you could just in your country

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

You have mistaken the state for a moral force when in fact it is a cancer, a parasite.

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

Truly we have all been touched by his noodly appendage.

Jail for the guy selling generators seems unreasonable. I will sat tho that if he really wanted to help people with what they needed he would have sold them at a price just enough to cover his cost. In times of need there's no time for greed.

@finaoo1167

Ай бұрын

If you set that as the standard, then the people who need generators will not get generators.

Great Job John. What this country needs is more John Stossels

I agree with this video, but based on the comments it looks like maybe Stossel should have included a basic lesson on supply and demand with regards to how high prices actually lead to increased supply (which he hints at but doesn't explain in detail), because a lot of folks seem to be missing that point. For anyone who's interested, here's a video that explains that concept in a bit more depth: kzread.info/dash/bejne/mm2Fp82wZsK1Zto.html

I'm in 10th grade and I really wish we could watch videos like this in the classroom, but anything that is remotely political is deemed "controversial" and not educational

A price gouger saved my bacon one time. I was going back to work after Christmas in 2015. I missed my regular stop to fill up with gas, I didn't worry to much because I knew there was 2 gas stations further up the road and I had just enough to make it there. What I didn't know was there had been a snow storm come through earlier that week and those 2 gas stations were out. I was running on vapors and I could not make it to the next city with the gas I had left. Luckily there was a guy there selling gas out of 5 gallon container for $100. If he wouldn't have been there I would have had to sleep in my truck for 2 days until the gas stations were back online (repair was scheduled for a Monday this was on a Saturday).

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

We don't see enough praises for market entrepreneurs like this who are maligned as "gougers." This was exactly the point I was making that when prices are allowed to rise you can sometimes still find the product on the shelf, whereas if it were kept lower, people might have hoarded it or wasted it. That is, using it for means less important to them than this was to you, at any rate.

@LRSS2455

5 жыл бұрын

You are 100% correct. I wasn't the only person at the gas station who needed gas. He only had 5 containers remaining and it would have been a shame if someone who really didn't need it, just buy it because they were low, I was empty. Then I would've been SOL. A few people were leaving because they weren't going to pay $20 a gallon for gas. Their loss was my gain.

I am guessing these kids don't come from poor families.

Pricing becomes inflexible at certain points. During a hurricane water prices are as inflexible as medical prices during a heart attack.

What an awesome service to provide. Cudos Stossel!

"Are you smarter than a politician?" Not exactly setting the bar high, Stossel.

Stossel is the best thing about Reason.

John Stossel is a national treasure!

But the cops all had generators

I've been around for 61 years and have seen multiple natural disasters across America. Unfortunately the Federal Government and FEMA has always done a terrible job of responding to these Disasters and providing relief. Katrina was a perfect example. Only the National Guard is prepared to deal with Disasters.There equipped with the right equipment to have mobility in adverse conditions,provide shelter,medical services and food prepation. The Federal Government should stop wasting money on FEMA and put it where it actually does good.

In the case of disasters like Katrina, Harvey, and Irma, gouging could have detrimental effects on the people can't afford to pay $10 for a gallon of water. We are talking life and death here.

Stossel is amazing. God bless him.

During disasters, the demand goes up drastically but unless the city facing the disaster gets aid right away, supply remains the same.

@fss1704

5 жыл бұрын

if i gave you 10000 dollars to invest in bringing supply to affected areas, would you rather go to the price gauged area or the not p.g.a? see.

@fss1704

5 жыл бұрын

would you rather take a loss at the increased shipping costs for selling at the "normal" price or would you rather sell for a profit?

The government is tax gouging me!!!!

Supply and Demand.

Auction off 1 generator, then another, then another until all are sold to the highest bidder. No price gouging as the buyer set the prices.

I’m confused what is so dangerous about bringing in supplies AFTER the disaster has happened?

It's not that these politicians don't know, it's that they are not looking for solutions to problems they are only interested in power.

Should be in every classroom. Different views.

Stossel...you are the Magnum PI of the reporting world! :)

Does is suck to over pay? Yes. But that is supply and demand. When supply is low, demand is high. Every time you buy groceries, you go through the same exact thing, but the supply and a competition keeps prices lower. Companies know they won't sell anything if other people are offering the same product for way cheaper. The entirety of the market is based off of buying things that you don't have from people who do and they are allowed to make the price what they want to. if you don't want to pay that, then don't. Vote with your wallet.

Why not a government agency provide the relief.

That feel when you went to school but never once got to watch a John Stossel video. Feelsbadman.

If a teacher in our local schools showed a Stossel video, he/she/it/they/zim would be fired.

Thank god real education is still happening.

Smarter and less greedy.

Don't like gouging? Two solutions, one- don't live in high natural disaster areas. Two- if you do live in those areas have at least a 72 hour kit or better yet emergency supplies and food storage.

When prices are to low, people buy surplus of what they need. However prices are to high people only buy the needed amount. Supply and Demand, and when the price is to high so there is no demand, the price comes down to where there is a demand. That way the resources are more equally distributed by those that need them.

This video is especially important now with the corona virus, with people frustrated that stores are out of toilet paper, yet mad at any store that would dare to raise their prices to discourage overconsumption.

@slofool

4 жыл бұрын

Lol I would still buy it all, charge more, and tell people 1 per person

Mr. Stossel you sir are amazing. Thank you for all you do.

There's correcting market inefficiencies, and there's price gouging. Many gougers buy up all the supplies in advance and then try to sell it back at insane prices. That is the type of "price gouging" that should be outlawed. If people want to take risk by moving needed supplies in to the area, like your example, then it is moral and actually correcting inefficiencies. People buying up the local supplies should be regulated out of existence

Haha we always watched stossel all the time in class. thankfully.

@jake4297

3 жыл бұрын

Damn all I watch in class is al gore and Native American propaganda

Have this in my Business classes and it's great. Really opens up some of the other minds.

Stossel for President!! 🇺🇸

John if by some chance you read this, LOL! You’re fighting the good fight sir. Our kids future depends on it. America can’t thank you enough.

@peterpan8263

5 жыл бұрын

Profiting on the needy and the poor is Anti-Christian and a sin

@mitchjones2821

5 жыл бұрын

Peter pan like profiting period? If you pay attention to what the video says, it’s supply and demand. A guy buys Reid generators at retail price is forced to mark them up higher than normal to turn a profit at all. Otherwise why be in business? If it wasn’t for him those generators would’ve never made their way down there at all. And thanks to the laws they can’t the idea is don’t always let the government be the one to bail people out. Less government

@mehrshadvr4

5 жыл бұрын

@@mitchjones2821 it's not supply and demand. It's called taking advantage of people's suffering and Libertarians are so good at protecting that. Lol

@mehrshadvr4

5 жыл бұрын

@@peterpan8263 yup. Libertarians should live in a 3rd world country and see their beliefs at work. For economics policies at least. Lol

@mitchjones2821

5 жыл бұрын

Why is it always poor and needy? People with money to buy them should have the opportunity. When shelves are cleared at every local outlet for everything you can imagine, special circumstances apply. Thanks to these laws, everyone, including the financially able are forced to rely on the government. The poor will wait for their government assistance, Because that’s the way they want it! I on the other hand, and millions like me, help themselves, always! I work hard and earn my own money and spend it how I want. You’re government utopia filled with regulations is a joke!

Price controls as those with insurance companies also cause a shortage in remote places of health professionals. It is nearly impossible to get providers to want to be in certain areas, because they cannot be reimbursed at higher rate (supply and demand) you cannot entice qualified health professional to want to provide much needed services. People go without the needed services and continue to suffer.

My opinion on price gouging depends on how much they’re gouging you for. If it’s reasonable, then okay.

Video title should be "These Students Know More Than Politicians about price gouging".

My history teacher loves showing your videos

For some reason, Stossel appealed to me more when he was talking about straws

@majermike

3 жыл бұрын

straws?

Uber charges more based upon supply and demand

Disaster Victims: "We'll pay double if you can get us emergency power and water" Government:"NO, you will suffer because we think that's better for you than you voluntarily paying more during this temporary period."

"Surge Pricing" far more persuasive in the age of Uber! Plus it explains partly WHY the price increases are necessary.

Thank God for Stossel!

He sold the generators for 2x what he paid for them? Isn't that called retail?

A counter argument: in SC, hurricanes are fairly routine. Most people have what they need after a hurricane. at least me and mine do. But every year, without fail, if a hurricane is libel to hit us, gasoline, water, propane, etc suddenly get 2 to 3 times more expensive. Those are not people taking risk to bring a product to people in need, that is people capitalizing on impending doom, necessities many of us need regardless of preparation prior to hurricane season. And as long as they do it prior to a state of emergency declaration, its 100% legal, which means now were seeing the state of emergency declared further out, and prices go up for in some cases a week before a hurricane might come through.

@fss1704

5 жыл бұрын

do you really think people would think of storing food if it wasn't for the price gauging? that's the thing....

@destinal_in_reality

5 жыл бұрын

Exactly. This is creating an incentive for preparedness. The more people do it, the more will be available in a crisis. Sounds like a positive good to me.

when it comes to gouging, i got it figured.. always sell your products at "gouging" prices, but give them a VERY large discount.. that way all you did was remove your discount

Wow, great!

What a wonderful concept!

You go, John!

Stossel for President!!!!

Stossel = Legend SITC = Hope for the Future

That is beautiful!

I LOVE IT!

Hey, if anyone one is watching this, I have a question: So, obviously the example above with the generators is valid, he brought them generator with his expenses and time and all that. But what about price gouging during the coronavirus? There’s people just buying everything off the shelves from their local store, or from Amazon, and since they have all of it, they set the prices high. Would price gouging be morally right? In my opinion, no because I could’ve easily went and taken all the TP and hand sanitizer and charged more while people panic, or order all on amazon, then set my own prices. I really didn’t work for it, I just saw an opportunity and took it, disregarding the health of my community. So, I believe in this case, price gouging is bad. Can someone please open my mind, because I truly want to know if it depends on circumstances, or price gouging is good in all situations

@slofool

4 жыл бұрын

It has already happened and Libertarian rags said they aren't doing anything wrong, its a part of free market. "It shows the market where the supply is most needed" Not a fan myself

Wow, amazing program to teach kids how to think critically.

Libertarians and Constitutional Conservatives have more in common than you think. Limbaugh turned me on to Walter E. Williams because by having Mr. Williams on as a guest host. He is a brilliant, funny guy to boot.

He should've just auctioned them off lol, But seriously i still have a hard time believing that price gouging is a good thing to the needy.

Fantastic job Stossel!

2:59 Hey, Raleigh! I live only half an hour from there!