Yes
No
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There are a ton of people trying to leave Florida and the gas stations are running out of gas. I keep a fairly sizable stock in case of hurricanes and I am considering taking ten gallons to the cars sitting in line at empty stations waiting for a truck to come and letting those waiting bid on the two five gallon containers. I get to make a few bucks and people who really need the gas the most get some gas.
Ethiclal? Yes or no?
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You might end up needing itOriginally Posted by t00nces2
If you do go and sell some you will be seen by most as a price gouger taking advantage of the situation
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I am a capitalist. Supply, demand... I would not go and demand a price, I would let them offer, I doubt it could be called gouging if they have the option of paying a price they are willing to pay. It goes to the three kinds of jobs offered: Good, cheap, and fast.... You can have any two.
By the same token, I am being called to put up storm shutters now, like right now. I have work scheduled and have regular customers to help. I tell people I will hang the shutters for $200 and people tell me that is a lot of money to hang the shutters. I tell them I will hang them next Thursday for $80. Hanging shutters sucks and I am busy and I would just a soon not have to bust my a$$ hanging shutters for people who call, one and done, two days before a hurricane is due to come through. Is that also gouging?
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The price to hang shutters sounds resonance when you take everything into account. You have reschedule other jobs and probably have overtime costs to deal with.
The moment you "sell" gas you've broken the law. If you accept a donation for the gas you may still be arrested for the same charges. Sad to say even if you give it away you could start a riot,
Recently the state of Indiana contacted my brother saying they think he is selling diesel fuel to others and not passing on the additional fuel tax they had just raised(I thinke he said it was $0.20/gal raise in taxes). My brother a truck driver, owner buys fuel and stores it in a tank at his house, 4-5000 gal tank. He has been doing this for years and pays all the taxes because he is a retail customer. Now since his most recent purchase came a few weeks before the raise in taxes took place Indiana thinks he is selling it and pocketing some extra money.
It's all about the money with the government your good will could get you into trouble.
I say keep your gas and help those you deem worthy of it. Thank you for being prepared. It ain't that hard to be prepared. Put up a little extra gas and keep your vehicles topped off when a hurricane is possibly coming for a visit. Fill the freezer with bottles of water, I use empty soda bottles. Purchase extra food throughout the year and it will be there for emergencies.
Emergencies come in all sorts of flavors, weather, job lay offs, wife got pregnant, kid(s) moved back home.
I like you have some gas on hand, in my case enough for a couple months use. We don't go far on a regular basis so two vehicles with full tanks will be enough for us. Plus we have propane tanks for cooking.
I like your desire to assist others but at the same time unless this is their first hurricane season I say shame on them. Good luck but you probably don't need much since you are smart enough to be prepared, 73, Mike sitting here waiting to see how much we get of this hurricane here in coastal North Carolina.
"Profit begins when you buy NOT when you sell." {quote passed down to me from a wise man}
Now go beat the copper out of something, Miked
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If you truly want to help someone, help them and ask nothing in return, otherwise you're just another pos trying to make a buck off of the hurricane.
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I am sure you could sell it, but then again not worth the risk. It looks like they may run out of gas in Florida so I would keep it!
Last edited by hobo finds; 09-07-2017 at 01:03 PM.
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Could be as you stated next Thursday would only cost $80 I assume the storm will have passed by Thursday...
Metal Recycling Entrepreneur
Thanks for posting this thread, its a real eye opener to what some of the people of the world have become.
Let your conscience be your guide.
I did not and would not suspect you of anything but the highest intentions(in case you or anyone else might think that). My interest was only to warn you of what could be a hazard in giving out gasoline to folks in line at a gas station.
I suspect you will find a grate way to assist some folks in need. 73, Mike
Seeing a bunch of desperate people in the path of a deadly storm and thinking of it as a chance to price gouge because "i am a capitalist" is a stronger critique of capitalism than anything Marx came up with
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So, screw them. They should have prepared. Government regulations aside, if I make money on the gas I put away, I am a bad person and unethical. It would be more ethical to make everyone wait in the path of danger than it would be to make gas available to someone that was concerned to the point they are willing to pay an exorbitant price to make sure their family was out of the path of a powerful hurricane? What if someone knocked on my door and offered me $100 for five gallons of gas?
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Honestly, I see a bigger safety concern for you, t00nces. I think it's an uncommonly brave/inadvisable thing to stand aside of a throng of automotive operators, panicked and en route to escape, now stuck in traffic, edging out of one the states with the most diverse records for violent crime, all while dangling a precious commodity in front of them. Even if one doesn't just bash you in the head with an expired road flare and take the gas, I could also see a mass fistfight break out once the "winner" of your auction comes to claim their prize and the losers try to pry it from their hands. Everyone thinks they deserve something; it's just a matter of what they think it's worth in trying to get it that separates the man from the monster.
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Also, the above phrasing for the poll does not actually describe an ethically ambiguous situation.
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Make a few bucks! The old feeble couple at the back of the line could use the gas and after all if they can pay to play a few gallons will move them along the way. I still say hold your gas you may need it!
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I'm sorry miked, my comment was not directed towards you. It was meant for the OP.
Maybe this was one of those times when I just should have ignored and moved on.
Cash In The Trash
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It's illegal ... but this your choice. I can't make you do anything.
Sledgehammer Enthusiast
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Ya gotta be a little more subtle than a bidding war....Just sayin
There ain't nothing wrong with an honest days work. Anyone who says otherwise is a fool.- Old Man
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To answer your question I looked in the mirror. How would I feel if my wife and kids were bidding for that five gallons of gas against a wealthy twenty year old driving a Mercedes right behind them. Would the person selling the gas be helping or taking advantage of the situation?
A businessman might sell gas for a profit, a person that wants to be perceived as helpful might sell gas at a break even point, but a real man would provide for those in need and only ask that the favor be passed forward. It is the boomerang affect, what goes around comes around. Someday I will be that person needing help.
Give back more to this world than we take.
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As I reread MikeD's post it dawned on me where I came up with my perspective. It was in kindergarten and we learned about the ant and grasshopper fable. The story highlights the fact that the ant spent the summer and fall collecting food and creating a shelter for winter. The grasshopper was busy enjoying the weather and was not concerned about winter. We had a very creative teacher that just happened to misplace the book before we were done so the class wrote the rest of the story. Of course the ant invited the grasshopper to join him in his shelter and shared his food as well.
I guess it is true, everything I needed to know I learned in kindergarten.
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