Men Arrested for "Hoarding" Gasoline

Otherwise known as buying a couple of gallons for your friends

Police arrested two men Sunday for their involvement in alleged gas "hoarding" in Connecticut.  

Police say Yunus Latif, 47, of Richmond Hill, Queens filled 30 five-gallon plastic tubs with four gallons of gas each at a station in West Haven, Conn. with the intention of bringing it back to neighbors in New York.

A witness told police they saw Latif loading up plastic containers filled with gas into his truck. When police arrived, they discovered the tubs with gas loaded in the back of the truck. The plastic lids were expanding, police say.

(H/T: A Serious Man)

Comments

[Nicholas Card]

Seriously?

I'm really curious how that differs from the following scenario:

Person A drives a car with a 15 gallon tank. Person B drives a long-range, modified truck with a 50 gallon tank. When they go to get gas, they both fill up. Assume they get the same fuel economy. Isn't Person B hoarding gas?

First off, if we let the free market decide gas prices, then you'd see a greater incentive for these companies to get gas into storm stricken areas. You'd also remove the incentive to hoard. Instead of going after people who are willing to drive to a different state to buy gas for their neighbors, we should be encouraging these people!

As it stands, NY is flipping a shit over "possible gas gouging" because price has gone up 15 cents. Can you say "California last month?!" Our gas went up more than 50 cents a gallon due to shortages. As it should have. But after a flipping hurricane, 15 cents is criminal!? Please.

[Shmurphy]

The only problem with that is the fact that gasoline is dangerous as fuck. I have nothing against them "hoarding" it, but they really should be using a safer container. It is a potential safety hazard when it's transported the way it was.