Re:Ask HN: People are panic buying. What to do?
by Fnoord on Saturday March 14, 2020 @11:11AM
(#22575836)
There's certain foods which are useful to have in larger amounts, and there's certain foods which are perishable. It makes sense to ensure you have some supply of the former, and it makes sense there's on short-term a higher demand than supply for these. For perishable products, it does not make sense, though I myself own for example a dehydrator with which I'm able to ensure perishable foods become less perishable.
Re:Ask HN: People are panic buying. What to do?
by selim_tiotoys on Saturday March 14, 2020 @11:19AM
(#22575896)
Funny how your last paragraph makes all of the above sounds irrelevant. That's the exact same rational - emotional chain "panic buyers" went through.
Re:Ask HN: People are panic buying. What to do?
by hn_throwaway_99 on Saturday March 14, 2020 @01:31PM
(#22576948)
Not at all. That's like telling people it's irrational to buy a fire extinguisher. Point is going out a buying all the fire extinguishers when there is a mass panic is dumb. Time to take reasonable precautions is in normal times, and I'm not talking about filling a floor in your house with TP, either.
The exact same thing happened a couple years ago WRT gas in Texas. There was no actual shortage, but because of the hurricane there was fear buying that there would be a shortage, so people showed up to gas stations literally filling up garbage cans with gas, and then there was an actual shortage.
If possible, though, I would definitely recommend stocking up on essentials when things get back to normal. I'm not worried about doomsday, just irrational humans clearing out the shelves at the slightest hit of a negative event.