Setting low prices might mean the few gallons of gas, bottles of water, or flights that are available are allocated to people who get to them first, or who can wait in line the longest, rather than based on who is willing to pay, but it’s not clear that these allocations are more egalitarian.
If that last sentence can be rephrased as “the counterfactual benefit is unclear”, then given that the counterfactual cost is clear (beneficiaries need to pay more, potentially a lot more) doesn’t this show that price gouging is probably net negative i.e. aren’t you arguing against, not for, it here?
(Genuine question, not a gotcha. I’m admittedly biased because I dislike the idea of profiting off others’ misery, suspect that purchasing power is moderately anticorrelated with need via wealth/income i.e. fewer DALYs are averted per person helped this way, and find the bounty reframing uncompelling, but I’m willing to change my mind. Another personal bias: I work in the market-shaping for global health space, which is about redressing market failures due to e.g. mismatch between need and ability to pay for it, and I suspect a similar dynamic is at play after hurricanes have devastated an area.)
Buyers have to pay a lot more, but sellers receive a lot more. It’s not clear that buyers at high prices are worse off than sellers, so it’s egalitarian impact is unclear.
Whereas when you stand in line, that time you wasted is gone. Nobody gets it. Everyone is worse off.
If that last sentence can be rephrased as “the counterfactual benefit is unclear”, then given that the counterfactual cost is clear (beneficiaries need to pay more, potentially a lot more) doesn’t this show that price gouging is probably net negative i.e. aren’t you arguing against, not for, it here?
(Genuine question, not a gotcha. I’m admittedly biased because I dislike the idea of profiting off others’ misery, suspect that purchasing power is moderately anticorrelated with need via wealth/income i.e. fewer DALYs are averted per person helped this way, and find the bounty reframing uncompelling, but I’m willing to change my mind. Another personal bias: I work in the market-shaping for global health space, which is about redressing market failures due to e.g. mismatch between need and ability to pay for it, and I suspect a similar dynamic is at play after hurricanes have devastated an area.)
Buyers have to pay a lot more, but sellers receive a lot more. It’s not clear that buyers at high prices are worse off than sellers, so it’s egalitarian impact is unclear.
Whereas when you stand in line, that time you wasted is gone. Nobody gets it. Everyone is worse off.
Misses my point, but never mind.