Price gouging--another name for Free Market at work

From "Giving up Control"

[link to www.givingupcontrol.com]


"Is it fair that 7-Eleven charges more than your local supermarket? Should they be forced to roll back prices to supermarket prices? A moment of reflection tells you that, if 7-Eleven were forced to charge supermarket prices, they would not have located a store on your street corner in the first place. Further reflection reveals another truth: The fact that the 7-Eleven has milk to sell after the snowstorm is precisely because your neighbor, who has a four-wheel drive car, drove to the supermarket. If 7-Eleven had the same prices, why would he drive to the supermarket? If he had not driven to the supermarket, if instead he bought milk from 7-Eleven, there would be no milk on the shelves for you to buy...."

"New Jersey’s anti-gouging law, which prohibits price hikes of more than 10 percent in an emergency..."

"Suppose “price gouging” was allowed and some stations raised the price of gasoline to $10 a gallon. Those drivers facing genuine emergencies would gladly pay the $10, while those who were simply going to the mall might think twice about their need for gasoline...."