Post #1981718
2026-05-04 14:22 UTC
It's good to understand how price escalation destroys demand under scarcity, and it's bad to think that price is a morally sound way to limit demand
If 12 people need a sandwich, and Big Sandwich has ten so sells at whatever price 2 people can't pay — say twice the usual price — they not only guarantee it's the hungriest folks who go hungrier, they're rewarded for doing so
It's not just capricious. It's structurally slanted away from just resolution of any form of shortage of goods or service
Replies (1)
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@gl33p@mastodon.social 2026-05-04 14:33
So when someone talks about "gouging" it's often an observation of sellers finding that price — what's called the market clearing price. And many glossy eyed reasonable man men will tell you that it works out great overall, because that sandwich profitmaxxing attracts some combination of a surge in Big Sandwich* plus Competing Sandwich† investing in providing more sandwiches * to protect their "Big"ness † to take some of that "Big"ness But that is often bullshit, thus reality since about 1972