Panic Buying and Price Gouging

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

Does your store have Toilet Paper?! This is seriously so disgusting. Those who need things like hand sanitizer are those most vulnerable. The cancer patient, the elderly, the disabled cannot wait in long lines, be in crowds or pay massive prices, and the greedy hoarding necessities should be held responsible for causing harm to those most vulnerable.

Guys like this that drove around buying all the hand sanitizer so he could try and sell it for $50 a pop should be arrested and his stash confiscated and distributed to the community free of charge with the meals on wheels program and local food pantries to help those most vulnerable in his community as part of his " fine" for the harm he inflicted upon others. Honestly, that is probably the best way to put a stop to people like this once and for all. If they know they are going to be arrested and have their stash donated to charity, they will finally stop doing this. I am glad he was kicked off Amazon and Ebay.

He Has 17,700 Bottles of Hand Sanitizer and Nowhere to Sell Them
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/technology/coronavirus-purell-wipes-amazon-sellers.html


How bad is this where you are? Stores here are wiped out. I had to order TP from Staples to be delivered it is so bad.

 

[bluegate]

It seems people know where that guy [in the article] lives, drive over and "kneecap" the son of a *****.

 

[Gordon_4_v1legacy]

You know in the 40?s this sort of behaviour was called War Profiteering and it was severely punished. Perhaps there needs to be a similar code enacted during pandemics.

 

[Agema]

I needed some loo roll, because we were low on it. First supermarket was sold out. Second only had packs of 16 (!!) left so I grabbed one rather than risk trying other shops and finding they were out too.

Three people on the way home saw me carrying these and made comments to me about panic buying (although one was sympathetic understanding the lack of availability). It's one of those irritations in life to hate panic buying, and then to end up in a situation where others' panic buying has made you look like you're panic buying too.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

I needed some loo roll, because we were low on it. First supermarket was sold out. Second only had packs of 16 (!!) left so I grabbed one rather than risk trying other shops and finding they were out too.

Three people on the way home saw me carrying these and made comments to me about panic buying (although one was sympathetic understanding the lack of availability). It's one of those irritations in life to hate panic buying, and then to end up in a situation where others' panic buying has made you look like you're panic buying too.

Buying a big package isn't really considered panic buying, especially when that is all they have. The lady I saw coming out of the store with 4 shopping carts filled with TP and water on the other hand is what is causing the problem. You're not the only one forced to buy bigger packages, Staples was sold out of all but the 18 megaroll packs when I ordered it and even those are all gone now.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Yeah, sorta want to panic buy due to shortages caused by everyone panic buying.

It's going to look really embarrassing when kids 20 years from now are learning about the history of this.

You know in the 40?s this sort of behaviour was called War Profiteering and it was severely punished. Perhaps there needs to be a similar code enacted during pandemics.

Going to say that as well. We can at least bring back the insult "spiv". That has a good sound to it.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

This is the first time in my life I feel proud and not weird for using wet paper towels for toilet paper (american toilet paper is too flimsy and doesn't do the job, paper towels is the closest to European style toilet paper you're not supposed to flush).



I think the way american toilet paper has come to be is like a wish granted from the cursed monkey paw. "You want toilet paper that you can flush down the toilet cause you're too dumb to throw it in the trash, granted, but it will be so flimsy it'll break apart as you use it and get stuck all over you and your hands!".

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

This is the first time in my life I feel proud and not weird for using wet paper towels for toilet paper (american toilet paper is too flimsy and doesn't do the job, paper towels is the closest to European style toilet paper you're not supposed to flush).



I think the way american toilet paper has come to be is like a wish granted from the cursed monkey paw. "You want toilet paper that you can flush down the toilet cause you're too dumb to throw it in the trash, granted, but it will be so flimsy it'll break apart as you use it and get stuck all over you and your hands!".

You should have opted for the " extra strong" type. Wouldn't paper towels feel like wiping your arse with sand paper?!! I think I will refrain from using a cheese grater on my nether regions TYVM. Charmin extra soft or extra strong is the way to go.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

Yeah, sorta want to panic buy due to shortages caused by everyone panic buying.

It's going to look really embarrassing when kids 20 years from now are learning about the history of this.

You know in the 40?s this sort of behaviour was called War Profiteering and it was severely punished. Perhaps there needs to be a similar code enacted during pandemics.

Going to say that as well. We can at least bring back the insult "spiv". That has a good sound to it.

It's awful really, sets of a chain of necessity bulk buying because you won't be able to buy it again. People who cannot afford to stand in long queues have to get what they can before it is gone otherwise they will not have any at all. It puts those with preexisting conditions who are supposed to be avoiding crowds right now in a terrible bind. If the people who have it stockpiled to the ceilings would just sell what they have at cost to their neighbors who are out, it would likely calm the situation down I would think and break the cycle faster, but we know that isn't going to happen, so they will likely have to start rationing it at stores to force stop it.

 

[SupahEwok]

I've been reading a book for a while called Merchant, Soldier, Sage (I believe I got the recommendation from the Escapist book thread, so forgive me if I repeat what someone else has said). It's a take on viewing history through a lens of caste struggle, rather than class struggle or great men which are the prevalent historical lenses (with "caste" defined as very broad groupings of jobs, not necessarily strict social groupings).

The main thesis of the book is to exposit that our modern society has been run by the merchant caste for the past couple of centuries, how modern capitalism spreads traditional merchant values, and charting the rise of the merchant caste to dominance. There's some interesting tidbits. One is that for much of history, the merchant caste was actively despised and limited by the other castes. Love for money was considered sinful by priests of many religions, the warrior aristocracy considered them cowardly, etc.

Another tidbit are merchant values, and how similar they are across societies throughout the world and history. I think the author quoted from the journal of a 16th century Indian (maybe Sri Lankan?) about the "proper values" of a merchant. They come out as similar to conservative rhetoric today: hard work, pull yourself up by the bootstraps, be frugal about spending money, etc.

And something the author put together is that for the merchant caste, trade was a contest in which the winner was the better informed and quicker thinking. It wasn't a question of morality: in the case of selling stocked food to a starving populace, gouging prices wasn't evil, it was winning. And I reflected this morning while doing my mom's panic shopping that that is the precise attitudes with these scalpers. They're buying up this stuff and outrageously upselling it, and they don't consider what they do wrong, they consider it as them being smarter than the other sheep and getting ahead.

And the reactions here in this thread are the exact ones that other castes have had of this merchant behavior for thousands of years: revulsion.

I'm disgusted by it too, but it's interesting to think about, and about how those kinds of values are what are dominant in American society today, and how you trace that back to capitalism and mercantilism. And then seeing it right in front of your face in the real world.

 

[Marik2]

Yeah, sorta want to panic buy due to shortages caused by everyone panic buying.

It's going to look really embarrassing when kids 20 years from now are learning about the history of this.

Historians are going to have a field day with the 2000s. So much social and political strife.

 

[Agema]

You should have opted for the " extra strong" type. Wouldn't paper towels feel like wiping your arse with sand paper?!! I think I will refrain from using a cheese grater on my nether regions TYVM. Charmin extra soft or extra strong is the way to go.

When I was a kid toilet paper seemed to come in two approximate styles: sandpaper and greaseproof paper. All in all, I'd say the latter was worse.

 

[Saint of M]

Not just that. Yes, people waiting an hour before the store opens is still a thing when it comes to water and sanatizer, and TP. However just going to walmart yesterday entire sections in the cracker, cereal, and spaghetti sauce have also been raided.

I am also wondering how many of these peoples are choosing to pay for this over their bills

 

[Eacaraxe_v1legacy]

I saw this coming a week ago and picked up a month's supply of asswipe while it was still on the shelves. Hopefully I'll be good.

Start shaving your assholes now so shit doesn't stick to the hair around your ass and you don't have to use as much TP.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

This is the first time in my life I feel proud and not weird for using wet paper towels for toilet paper (american toilet paper is too flimsy and doesn't do the job, paper towels is the closest to European style toilet paper you're not supposed to flush).



I think the way american toilet paper has come to be is like a wish granted from the cursed monkey paw. "You want toilet paper that you can flush down the toilet cause you're too dumb to throw it in the trash, granted, but it will be so flimsy it'll break apart as you use it and get stuck all over you and your hands!".

You should have opted for the " extra strong" type. Wouldn't paper towels feel like wiping your arse with sand paper?!! I think I will refrain from using a cheese grater on my nether regions TYVM. Charmin extra soft or extra strong is the way to go.

I said wet paper towels. If you don't saturate them with water then sure, they'd feel terrible lol. And no, even the extra strength stuff is not strong enough. Still tears too easily.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

He Has 17,700 Bottles of Hand Sanitizer and Nowhere to Sell Them
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/technology/coronavirus-purell-wipes-amazon-sellers.html

On a positive not, karma came to bite this guy in the ass. Brothers who hoarded 17,700 bottles of hand sanitizer forced to donate to charity [https://www.today.com/news/brothers-who-hoarded-17-700-bottles-hand-sanitizer-forced-donate-t176028]. It seems Tennesee authorities caught wind of the guy and started an investigation for illegal price gouging.

Also, look who surfaced again. We were talking about how we hadn't seen you around not too long ago. People were worried. How you been?

 

[Eacaraxe_v1legacy]

I said wet paper towels. If you don't saturate them with water then sure, they'd feel terrible lol. And no, even the extra strength stuff is not strong enough. Still tears too easily.

I can't wait for three months for now when we're still dealing with coronavirus and a fatberg crisis blowing out urban waste removal.

 

[Agema]

I can't wait for three months for now when we're still dealing with coronavirus and a fatberg crisis blowing out urban waste removal.

At least the guys who deal with fatbergs must be mega pros in disease risk reduction.

 

[Trunkage]

This might be relevant:


Some of the problems arise about when the state of emergency is called

 

[Marik2]

I would actually do price gouging if I had the money and resources to do so. People always flip things for profit.