Posted on 08/16/2003 10:55:35 AM PDT by chance33_98
Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham Urges Michigan Residents to Report Inflated Gas Prices
8/16/03 12:10:00 PM
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To: National Desk
Contact: Drew Malcomb of the Department of Energy, 202-586-5806
WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham reiterated that the Gas Price Hotline is up and running and encourages those who have seen price inflation in Michigan due to the power outages to report those unjustified price hikes.
Consumers who encounter such prices should seek other stations and bring it to our attention via the Department of Energy Gas Price Hotline at 800-244-3301.
In a situation like this, where a gas station owner may have to buy a generator and fuel to operate his pumps, or where gas may have to be shipped in from far away on short notice, higher prices are not only justified but praiseworthy. High prices get gas to where people need it. The alternative is shortages and rationing. If you don't like the price, don't pay it and go without, it's as simple as that.
Reminds me of the people up north who bought truckloads of chainsaws and generators after Hurricane Andrew, and took them at significant cost and inconvenience down to Florida where people needed them urgently. Were they hailed for their contribution to the cleanup effort? No, they were castigated for gouging people, because the prices were two or three times what you'd pay at K-Mart. The media berated them, politicans passed laws against price gouging, and the supply of tools dried up.
Collectivist idiots would rather live in shared squalor than allow the free market to distribute goods to where they are most needed. There is no such thing as price gouging, and anyone who says otherwise is a Communist fool.
-ccm
I am constantly amazed at how many fair-weather capitalists we have who want government controls over market prices -- the core of our economy. Government controls over prices is a feature of a socialist economy.
There is no such thing as price gouging, and anyone who says otherwise is a Communist fool.
In a capitalist economy there is no such thing as "price gouging"! In the old communist economies of East Europe there were always lines for everything as things were always in short supply. That was because the prices were kept artifically low. There was no incentive to produce goods for artifically low prices. When they switched to capitalism the lines dried up when the prices went up. The stores are now full of goods. The prices are much higher as well. There were those who complained "But the price of bread is now 10 times what it used to be and I can't afford that." The answer to that is: "If the price of bread is so high then now is the perfect time to get into the bread-making business." Those who saw opportunity thrived. Those who ran to the government for protection -- well, they are called "Democrats."
You sound a little bit like you might be a redneck. ;)
We need a few more like you. Just a couple million.
Lack of competition. There is no incentive to lower the price. It has to be high for the owners of the retail outlets to make enough to pay for the costs of the real estate the service stations are on and to pay the costs of the real estate their own homes occupy.
What business are you in? Do you charge the same as someone in your line of work does who works in Louisiana? Or do you charge more for the same work in Maui? Is your salary the same as someone in the same line of work in Louisiana? If not, then why do you expect the person who runs the service station in Maui to charge the same as a service station owner in Louisiana if you don't?
What hardship, dude? The lights were out for less than 24 hours in most places. That's not a "hardship." If some yahoo panics because the lights are out and wants to fill his Ford Excursion with 40 gallons of high-test, he should be charged extra. As I said above, higher prices preserve the remaining supplies for people who may really and truely need them rather than selling everything to the first schmuck who drives up.
24 hours without lights is not a natural disaster that will "wipe your life out." Get a grip.
I will most likely need some help from the surrounding communities
If your life was wiped out by a natural disaster them you can bet that you will get help from the surrounding communities. They will give it for free. They will give till it hurts. But no one was wiped out by this power outage.
not a chain saw that costs 3 or 4 times what it is worth.
More lessons in capitalism are needed here I see. What is a chain saw worth? The manufacturers don't give them away at cost. The distributers add in the cost of storage and transport. The retailer adds in more. Do you drop your job and run over to the other side of the country and give away your job for free during natural disasters? Why do you expect a trucking firm to give away their service for free? Sould they not recover the costs associated with shipping a truckload of chainsaws from Florida? What would a fair price be?
No problem with that, it's a business decision, and in this case the merchants who decided to give away the store recouped tremendous future good will from the public. Good for them. I don't even mind if politicians and the media publicize supposed price-gouging in order to shame a merchant into lowering prices.
But it was-- and should always be-- the ultimate decision of the individual business owner, not the state, that governs such circumstances. As soon as you put the machinery of legislation and law enforcement to work enforcing prices, you guarantee either shortages or higher prices, depending on which special-interest groups have the most political power.
--ccm
Fooey. I suppose you think less of tow-truck drivers, doctors, lifeguards or firemen for the way they earn their bread? After all, they all make their living from relieving the hardships of others.
For that matter, a farmer makes his buck off the hunger of others, a carpenter or a realtor's livelihood depends on the very real hardships others would face without shelter, and the sales clerk at the Gap makes her nut from the ill effects that naked people suffer. In fact, if you DON'T make a living relieving peoples' hardships, you're a useless parasite, and you should thank your lucky stars for the support of those of us who do.
Some people hear of a disaster and do nothing more than cluck their tongues and say "the government" ought to do something about it. Then in the next breath, they condemn the guy who buys a truck load of power tools or bottled water at retail in Ohio, and drives all night to Florida to sell it at a higher price to people who need it more urgently. I admire the capitalists who get off their @$$#$ and actually do something to help people out, and I think they deserve to be well paid for it. The others are slugs and losers and looters and collectivist pirates who deserve my scorn.
-ccm
Perhaps you missed the story that the government is diverting petroleum to fill the Stategic Petroleum Reserve -- 700 million barrels worth. This comes on top of low commercial inventories. Add to that the fact that refineries have to produce boutique gas formulated to fulfill individual cities requirements in the summer months makes gas prices higher. And soon, if not already, refineries will start lowering production of gasoline to increase production of home heating fuel. It makes for high prices right now. There are plenty of valid reasons for high gasoline prices.
If you think you are getting gouged, why don't you open a gas station? You can buy gasoline at 20 cents a gallon and sell it for $2.05, right?
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