Scrap the scalping laws

But what I really don't understand about the scalping brouhaha is why anyone thinks the government should be involved in deciding how much a willing buyer can pay a willing seller for tickets to a lawful entertainment event. We all take it for granted that if you're willing to pay for the privilege, you can stay at the best hotel, live in the best neighborhood, eat at the best restaurant, or hire the best lawyer. So what accounts for the heavy breathing when some fans pay a premium in order to see Daisuke Matsuzaka take the mound or watch David Beckham bend it with the L.A. Galaxy? Or — this isn't only about sports — to hear Beyoncé sing "Irreplaceable" or catch a sold-out "Wicked" on Broadway?

Hey my mother in-law (OK so my father in-law is a college professor and she a former teacher) once sat in my living room complaining about heating oil prices and made the brilliant statement 'well I think this is terrible, after all people shouldn't have to pay for oil to heat their homes."

Slack jawed I asked her than who should pay and she said the government should. After all heating is a basic right. (let's not even try and suggest that WE are the government that wouldn't sink in)

Instead I reminded her that aware or unaware she was quoting Karl Marx. At this point she huffed and turned and walked up stairs. The father in-law in a very patronizing way says to me "you know you're a bright guy but you shouldn't be so close minded."

My answer to him was, hmmm that's funny I always hear that from the left when you don't agree with them, did you ever stop to think that you're being just as close minded if you don't shift positions and agree with me?

"Well, hurumffff perhaps you have a point there" he said as he made his way up to console his wife." I think that was the last time they ever visited and it's been a good 4 years or so!

Noun 1. scalper - someone who buys something and resells it at a price far above the initial cost, "he got theater tickets through a scalper"

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In New York, too, consenting adults can now publicly engage in supply and demand.

Ok, as long as the scalpers don't manipulate the market, buying enough tickets to create and artificial scarcity in supply.

"I think permitting a free market to work its magic there is the smart approach."

I don't see that the scalper adds a lot of value and increasing costs without adding value is not that smart overall, except maybe on the part of the scalper.

Price controls — whether on gasoline, medical care, or baseball tickets — are never a smart idea. They invariably distort the market, frustrate consumers, encourage hoarding, and lead to shortages

A scalper distorts the market by creating an artificial scarcity in supply, frustrates consumers who may have to pay more than they wanted to, is hoarding and in a sense, if the scalper doesn't sell all the tickets can create a shortage for consumers who can't buy from the original vendor because the scalper bought the tickets, can't buy from the scalper when they can't find him, and thus have no ticket.

Let's see how this works.

Scalper gets 50 tickets for $20 each from Tiketron, cost $1,000. Tiketron is happy to get rid of the tickets.

Scalper sells 30 tickets for $40 each, total $1,200. scalper makes $200 with no added value and probably with no withholding. Would have been nice to sell all 50 tickets and get $1,000 profit, but that's the way it goes.

Everybody made money and is happy.

Well, maybe the people who can't attend the event because they couldn't get a ticket from Tiketron because Tiketron sold them to a scalper aren't happy. Remember the scalper had 20 tickets left over, so these people obviously couldn't find him. Or maybe they could find him but couldn't afford the extra $20.

And maybe the vendors at the event aren't happy. Remember, the scalper had 20 tickets left over so the vendors' customer base was reduced by that much. And of course it was reduced some more because some of the people who paid the extra $20 for tickets didn't have enough money left to buy from the vendors.

But what the heck, Tiketron is happy, the promoters of the event are happy, and the scalper is certainly happy since he profited for so little effort.

We should do this with more things. How about restaurant reservations?

That's even better for the scalper because there's no investment. He makes reservations under several different names, hangs around the restaurant door, and when someone without a reservation shows up he offers them one of his reservations at whatever price so they don't have to wait. That bears thinking about.

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