Posted on 11/06/2012 5:03:21 PM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Being prepared for disaster is a way of life for many American preppers, but there are also many people throughout the Nation completely unprepared for the unthinkable.
Those who are unprepared become easy targets for victimization. Since Superstorm Sandy struck New York, there have been hundreds of reports of price gouging in the area as frantic city-dwellers rush about in search of basic supplies.
New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said Monday that he was in the process of investigating more than 400 possible cases of price gouging as prices on things like gasoline, food, bottled water, generators, batteries and flashlights have skyrocketed at some retailers. He said he was investigating supermarkets, hardware stores, bodegas, delis, hotels and taxis throughout the New York City region.
We are actively investigating hundreds of complaints weve received from consumers of businesses preying on victims of Hurricane Sandy, Schneiderman said. Our office has zero tolerance for price gouging.
One customer was shocked to be charged $10 for a box of matches at a neighborhood store. There were also reports of potatoes at one grocer going up from $3 to $7 and a loaf of bread costing $7.
If an entrepreneur were allowed to make a profit, he’d find a way to get blankets there. Doesn’t make sense to make an extraordinary effort and lose money to get a product into the area.
I don’t favor such laws either but in a natural disaster when life and death necessities are not available for most people even at high cost I can’t see telling granny to freeze in the dark to turn a buck.
Whoever does will have to live with the infamy.
Rationing by price in a disaster favors those who needs are less while rationing by quantity, even at a higher price, provides some greater opportunity for those whose needs are real and might go completely unmet otherwise.
Granny has no money? The entrepreneur can tell her to freeze in the dark, he wants his $300.
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