US Election 2004

After Hurricane Charley, Florida officials were quick to attack and prosecute individuals they called “greedy” profiteers.  To which, economist Walter Williams would say:

YOU CAN CALL IT GREED, selfishness or enlightened self-interest, but the bottom line is that it's these human motivations that get wonderful things done. Unfortunately, many people are naive enough to believe that it's compassion, concern and "feeling another's pain" that's the superior human motivation. As such, we fall easy prey to charlatans, quacks and hustlers. [W. Williams, The Virtue of Greed, Capitalism Magazine, 1/5/2001] 

Now, Florida has been hit by Hurricane Frances.  News reports worry that a lack of gasoline in South Florida will hamper efforts to return home by those that evacuated. 

Three years ago in discussing price increases during a hurricane, Williams wrote that profit motivated gasoline price increases during Hurricane Floyd was good policy during this emergency because it managed a scare resource:

"OK, Williams," you say, "explain that one." Say gas prices before the hurricane threat was $1.10 a gallon. You're running low or have a half-tank and just want to fill up. If the price stayed at $1.10, you'd fill up. But what if the price rose to $1.75? A lot of people would probably say, "I'm only going 100 miles inland, so I'll make do with the half tank." Or, if you're riding on empty, at $1.75 a gallon you just might decide to buy just a half tank and fill up when you get to your destination 100 miles inland.

Here's the question: In the wake of a mass evacuation, which is the preferable state of affairs -- people's gas tanks filled half full enabling everyone to get away from the hurricane, or many people with full gas tanks, and gasoline stations out of gas, and people stranded with empty fuel tanks? [Ibid.]

Anyone doing without in the aftermath of these hurricanes can thank Governor Bush for chasing away those they would have been willing to trade values for mutual advantage without force or fraud.  Those that would have solved the problem of scarce resources with trade were threatened with the misuse of force by government officials.

|  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this