Wall Observer BTC/USD - Bitcoin price movement tracking & discussion

[bitserve]

No, really, I am serious now... Why do people think toilet paper will be their biggest concern in case of a shortage of supplies?


Maybe it's the cheapest way to completely fill a supermarket cart so that they fool themselves that they are doing good?



Nonsense.

Think you nailed it. 

If so, then maybe we really needed a pandemic to rebalance humanity.

And in some way I am also serious about that. I mean... If this thing really goes BAD it will be a great "stress test" of current dependence on specific chains of supply. Not that I really want that to happen (unlike some) but just trying to see the good side of an inevitable bad situation.

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[Ibian]

P.S.: Thinking about this is making me recognise how wonderful is to have free public health service and how we usually don't see the value in those things we have always taken for granted.

It's not free. In this case it appears you don't see the cost.

Of course it is being paid in advance in order to be "free" when you need it but, there is something very wrong with the alternative system:

Look at the prices of medical procedures in the US. One would suppose that capitalism would manage to reduce prices due to competition as it does in most other sectors. But in this particular case it is not happening at all. How do you reconcile US not having universal health care and still having the biggest per person spend? It just doesn't make any sense.

I don't believe in socialism, but in this particular case I have to acknowledge universal health care works way better overall.

Of course I find completely ridiculous that universal health care also covers foreigners (and even ilegal migrants) here whose respective nations don't reciprocate when we go there. That's completely stupid and plain wrong from an economical point of view (I will leave ethical concerns out of this) and it is well known there are many people exploiting this.

I don't know nearly enough about the US health system to answer this, but I will say that part of the problem is that the US is not a capitalist country. It is as socialist as everywhere else in the west, it just has a slightly different form.

Another potential issue is the sue culture. It's so out of hand that we make fun of it in the rest of the world. What's a medic to do when he risks getting sued every time he treats a patient? Well he obviously has to charge enough that he can afford that risk.

I have stayed at a number of hotels in thailand with pools over the past months, and they all have the same sign with the same clause: There is no lifeguard, and you use the pool at your own risk.

Remove the welfare state - all of it, rip it out by the roots - and change the legal system so people are forced to accept a higher degree of personal responsibility for their own actions, and prices might eventually come down. But it's a decades long process, even if done right, which it won't be. Basically the whole country is fucked.

[Lambie Slayer]

via Imgflip Meme Generator

COVBULL-19 refrigerator magnet.

 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Corona-Extra-Beer-Sexy-Busty-Model-In-Bikini-Refrigerator-Magnet-/262201239956

64 days till the Halvening and all is well.  

[Ibian]

Look at the prices of medical procedures in the US. One would suppose that capitalism would manage to reduce prices due to competition as it does in most other sectors. But in this particular case it is not happening at all. How do you reconcile US not having universal health care and still having the biggest per person spend? It just doesn't make any sense.

Simple. Medicine in the US is a semi-socialized, government-market-distorted clusterfuck that has nothing whatsoever to do with capitalism.

So the alternative being fully socialising it would probably work better IN COMPARISON... Unless they manage to keep corrupting the system somehow... which probably they would.

Is there any country where a pure capitalist health system exist? If there is, I would like to know and compare costs.

Possibly in eastern europe somewhere, but I can't say for sure. In some of the former soviet countries communism and socialism is (at least officially) illegal. I'll be looking into this in the next half year or so.

[HairyMaclairy]

No, really, I am serious now... Why do people think toilet paper will be their biggest concern in case of a shortage of supplies?

What about water and food?

How the fuck does this work?  Like "I am fully prepped for the apocalypse because now I have a room completely filled with toilet paper." ?

Maybe it's the cheapest way to completely fill a supermarket cart so that they fool themselves that they are doing good?

Don't they know that when you don't eat you barely shit either?

Nonsense.

China is (was) the worlds biggest exporter of toilet paper.  

There’s bound to be a genuine supply side shortage somewhere.  

People are all thinking this is a demand side panic.  That’s not necessarily the case.  Why the fuck can’t I get lawn beetle killer?  Is that a blind demand panic as well?  Why can’t LFC get supplies? 

It all leads back to the worlds manufacturing hub being a bit fucked at the moment.

[Ibian]

Six pages to backread  
I'm still in a hurry, wife got sick (i hope it's a "normal" virus, but no rhinitis and a sore throat for a start *fingers crossed*).
Just wanted to contribute this quickly to Covid-Observer:

https://www.inverse.com/article/60949-keto-diet-influenza-fight-infection
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31732517

Does not hurt. May be of some value for WO brothers who get sick.

The meat eaters shall take over the world~!

There were a few links recently that pointed in the same direction, that meat eaters are more resistant to the virus than plant eaters. As it happens I mostly eat meat and always have. So many concerned people growing up, you will die before 30, and here we are.

[nutildah]

I'm out of TP
No prob, saved by the front desk
They give it away

[rolling]

The government should not be responsible for anything of substance. A government is a costly, slow, and bureaucratic way to organize anything. It has it's place only in regulating, auditing and prosecuting.

Everything else should be handled by the free market. A free market is not what we have, and we can't have a free-market as long as the economy runs on monopoly money.

A truly competitive free market would work itself out as long as the government sets clear boundaries and is there to prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

Of course this can't happen either as long a bribery is legal in the form of lobbyists. Any candidate taking anything, even a free meal, should be prosecuted. The US government already has conflict of interest rules that conveniently don't extend to politicians.

[HairyMaclairy]

The government should not be responsible for anything of substance.

A truly competitive free market would work itself out as long as the government sets clear boundaries and is there to prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

Uh

[bitserve]

P.S.: Thinking about this is making me recognise how wonderful is to have free public health service and how we usually don't see the value in those things we have always taken for granted.

It's not free. In this case it appears you don't see the cost.

Of course it is being paid in advance in order to be "free" when you need it but, there is something very wrong with the alternative system:

Look at the prices of medical procedures in the US. One would suppose that capitalism would manage to reduce prices due to competition as it does in most other sectors. But in this particular case it is not happening at all. How do you reconcile US not having universal health care and still having the biggest per person spend? It just doesn't make any sense.

I don't believe in socialism, but in this particular case I have to acknowledge universal health care works way better overall.

Of course I find completely ridiculous that universal health care also covers foreigners (and even ilegal migrants) here whose respective nations don't reciprocate when we go there. That's completely stupid and plain wrong from an economical point of view (I will leave ethical concerns out of this) and it is well known there are many people exploiting this.

I don't know nearly enough about the US health system to answer this, but I will say that part of the problem is that the US is not a capitalist country. It is as socialist as everywhere else in the west, it just has a slightly different form.

Another potential issue is the sue culture. It's so out of hand that we make fun of it in the rest of the world. What's a medic to do when he risks getting sued every time he treats a patient? Well he obviously has to charge enough that he can afford that risk.

I have stayed at a number of hotels in thailand with pools over the past months, and they all have the same sign with the same clause: There is no lifeguard, and you use the pool at your own risk.

Remove the welfare state - all of it, rip it out by the roots - and change the legal system so people are forced to accept a higher degree of personal responsibility for their own actions, and prices might eventually come down. But it's a decades long process, even if done right, which it won't be. Basically the whole country is fucked.

Yes, I can understand the "sue culture" has a big impact on prices. You really need to set crazy prices to be able to cushion fines that can even reach the hundreds of millions here and there.

Removing the welfare state? I donno... Maybe that's too much. Do you know what kind of things can do people that doesn't have enough to feed themselves? I don't think the welfare state was created just because of making sure everyone is well fed for... charity... it is also for safety of the rest.

Also, the health system is very complex... If it were fully private and only for a few that can pay for it there would be no economy of scale and probably the cost would skyrocket. As much as I do believe in capitalism, until I see a detailed and well thought plan of how it could be implemented and what it costs would be I wouldn't vouch for it.

Maybe Amazon has a plan for that... if so I would like to study it.

In the meantime, I prefer euro universal health care even if there a lot a changes I would do... The first one being charging service costs to anyone whose country doesn't reciprocate the same.

[rolling]

The government should not be responsible for anything of substance.

A truly competitive free market would work itself out as long as the government sets clear boundaries and is there to prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

Uh

Substance meaning actual productivity. Like treating patients, managing companies, making economic/business decisions.

[Last of the V8s]

-That woman has pretty large earrings.
-Thought she was a brunette.
-Wonder what the hand gestures mean.
-Think I have that same scarf.
-Cool retro poster.
etc

[goldkingcoiner]

I will never understand the toilet paper shortage. The first thing people do in the face of doom is buy massive unreasonable amounts of TP....

[HairyMaclairy]

prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

making economic/business decisions.

Uh

[rolling]

prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

making economic/business decisions.

Uh

You're an idiot

[HairyMaclairy]

-Cool retro poster.

I can’t read the text tho

[HairyMaclairy]

prosecute cartels, monopolies, collusion, price setting, and other anti-competitive practices.

making economic/business decisions.

Uh

You're an idiot

Thank you


A lengthier (JJGish) way of making the same point is to state that market regulation requires significant normative judgements.  This is particularly relevant in the merger control space where the regulator is required to evaluate the likely market dominance of the combined entity which is, at best, a hypothetical economic construct.  As such, the regulator is incapable of standing apart from the market and becomes an integral market actor making ‘economic/business decisions’.  This is without going into the challenges of regulatory capture where there is a cross-over in personnel between the regulator and the market dominant actors.

But it’s faster to say ‘uh’

[hodl_2015]

I will never understand the toilet paper shortage. The first thing people do in the face of doom is buy massive unreasonable amounts of TP....

I buy massive unreasonable amounts of TP, but not out of panic. Together with home-baked bread, it drastically reduces my supermarket volume, so I can just about manage with a tertis-level over-filled shopping basket instead of needing a shopping trolley for the rest of the year. Saves a lot of time every time I visit a supermarket. Both in time navigating a busy supermarket and returning the trolley from the car-park.

[bitserve]

No, really, I am serious now... Why do people think toilet paper will be their biggest concern in case of a shortage of supplies?

What about water and food?

How the fuck does this work?  Like "I am fully prepped for the apocalypse because now I have a room completely filled with toilet paper." ?

Maybe it's the cheapest way to completely fill a supermarket cart so that they fool themselves that they are doing good?

Don't they know that when you don't eat you barely shit either?

Nonsense.

China is (was) the worlds biggest exporter of toilet paper.  

There’s bound to be a genuine supply side shortage somewhere.  

People are all thinking this is a demand side panic.  That’s not necessarily the case.  Why the fuck can’t I get lawn beetle killer?  Is that a blind demand panic as well?  Why can’t LFC get supplies? 

It all leads back to the worlds manufacturing hub being a bit fucked at the moment.

I don't know, I have just checked and my toilet paper says it is made in Spain. Same with the kitchen paper, which is a great substitute btw. I have even checked the business name and they do indeed have a big factory here. Maybe it is the raw material or something what is imported from China?

Anyways, yeah, China has become the biggest source of many things and this will be a great stress test and maybe something will be learnt from it.

But my point is mainly about the weird rationalisation that some people seem to be doing about what is or isn't really critical... and TP scoring really high for some.

About the lawn beetle killer... have you checked a bunch of alternative sources and still no luck?

[HairyMaclairy]

It’s the toilet paper whales man