Capitalism at its Finest

ReefMonger · #1 07/10/2006, 11:12 PM

Holy Moly I was just cruising around frags.org and ReefEnvy is wanting $500 for a single polyp of Orange Envy. $100 a polyp I can see but $500!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.frags.org/memberfragdetails.php?fid=2561

BryanBusza · #2 07/10/2006, 11:16 PM

that has to be a typo.

Maybe 50 bucks. But 500! The picture looks like the standard RPE too.

cowcio · #3 07/10/2006, 11:17 PM

lol.... that's great

cowcio · #4 07/10/2006, 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BryanBusza
The picture looks like the standard RPE too.

It doesn't look like the standard RPE to me. Looks like an honest orange pic on my monitor.

mr pink floyd · #5 07/10/2006, 11:22 PM

WHAT????

i got a colony of those for 30 bucks, abotu 20 polyps!

... they are orange people eaters

maybe im mistaken, but those look exactly liek OPE

jessiesgrrl · #6 07/10/2006, 11:28 PM

That's not all.. Saltwaterfish.com wants $499 for a blue/red Acan colony I want. My hubby just made a rude noise at me when I clicked on it to look closer...I think he felt safe though because it wasn't a zoanthid.

Laurie

jessiesgrrl · #7 07/10/2006, 11:29 PM

Also, imo pricegougers must take their balls and go home. I won't pay it and be taken advantage of.

::Wonderwoman cuffs clink!::
Laurie

tekknoschtev · #8 07/10/2006, 11:33 PM

The funny thing about capitalism (we've discussed things like this recently on a local forum) is that if no one was willing to pay the high price, it wouldn't be there. The price will be what the market can bear.

Trust me, I think its a huge joke, $500 for a single polyp. I also absolute love the creative use of "rare" this and "slow growth" that and "only two until 2008". I'd be very interested to follow whoever is selling those around other forums and local sales, because I find it hard to believe ANYONE has any of them if they grow so slow that frags come around 2 polyps every year and a half... The other sales also make clever use of the words "true" and "rare" and "real deal"...

This whole thing is a joke to me. Capitalism and marketing at its finest, yes, but still a joke.

cardgenius · #9 07/11/2006, 12:10 AM

Check out their website. They have them at $100 per polyp.

Biogirl361 · #10 07/11/2006, 12:13 AM

yeah i was just going to say, must be a typo as the website still says 100

marine134 · #11 07/11/2006, 03:15 AM

$500 for a poly of paly thats one super expensive coral.

Reef Junkie · #12 07/11/2006, 07:36 AM

$100 a polyp is absurd.
Money hungry people do not assimilate well into our social order.
Making a buck to help support your hobby is one thing, price gouging angers me.

ReefMonger · #13 07/11/2006, 08:42 AM

I dont think its a typo the 1 and the 5 are not really that close to each other. The website was last updated in Feb.

jessiesgrrl · #14 07/11/2006, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by tekknoschtev
The funny thing about capitalism (we've discussed things like this recently on a local forum) is that if no one was willing to pay the high price, it wouldn't be there. The price will be what the market can bear.

Trust me, I think its a huge joke, $500 for a single polyp. I also absolute love the creative use of "rare" this and "slow growth" that and "only two until 2008". I'd be very interested to follow whoever is selling those around other forums and local sales, because I find it hard to believe ANYONE has any of them if they grow so slow that frags come around 2 polyps every year and a half... The other sales also make clever use of the words "true" and "rare" and "real deal"...

This whole thing is a joke to me. Capitalism and marketing at its finest, yes, but still a joke.

Hmmm. Well, sort of.

Capitalism is not with out its inherent market defects. A market defect is when supply, demand, and competition do not control the price/cost of a product. For example, pharmeceutical companies. The consumer who is paying for the drugs does not get to chose the drug they buy- their doctor does. More to the point, the doc also controls whether or not a generic can be supplemented. That is why for many years the pharm companies romanced only the doc with incentives. And we won't even talk about the lobbying for public policy/legislation involved there with copyrights/intellectual property/trademarks/taxation on R&D costs for meds.

When the consumer cannot choose between products, it knocks out competition, and if they also do not have the ability to forego the product if the price is too high, capitalism fails... prices rise wihtout check, and we have to use other means to control the market experiencing the defect such as gov't subsidy or public policy. A great example would be the elderly choosing between groceries and cardiac meds.

I am not picking on the Pharm companies- it does exist elsewhere in our society: Airlines, fuel (gas, heating oil, etc), the salaries of Congress (J/k).

In this case with the polyp price- since we all can forgo the item because of the price and trade with each other, I would all but guarantee he won't get $500/polyp. If someone is stupid enough to pay it after all, there still will not be enough consumers to buy it at that price to make the market reset the baseline price for that polyp.

Of course, all that having been said.. we all saw Communism fail to human nature, so I'll take the market defects in capitalism anyday over standing in line for hours in the old USSR for toliet papar... LOL

I'm glad we can trade here.

My humble opinion
Laurie

Reef Junkie · #15 07/11/2006, 10:38 AM

Quite an opinion.

I second it.

jessiesgrrl · #16 07/11/2006, 10:56 AM

LOL Yeah... that was my Stuart Smally (Mike Meyers, old SNL) Deep Thought of the Day on incentive alignment...

Laurie

surfnvb7 · #17 07/11/2006, 02:02 PM

they are only worth that much if someone is willing to pay it.

all it takes is one person with an uncontrollable urge to spend money from their deep pockets, and reefenvey just made a killing. capitalism or not....

thats no typo, he's done his homework and knows where to find the people who will pay anything for something *rare*

ScotchMaster · #18 07/11/2006, 04:48 PM

He is out of his beanstalk

CoralNutz · #19 07/11/2006, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jessiesgrrl
LOL Yeah... that was my Stuart Smally (Mike Meyers, old SNL) Deep Thought of the Day on incentive alignment...

Laurie

Stuart Smally was Al Franken...

Quote:

Originally posted by ScotchMaster
He is out of his beanstalk

jessiesgrrl · #20 07/11/2006, 06:55 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by CoralNutz
Stuart Smally was Al Franken...

LOL! I stand corrected. All I need is a hair piece and a mirror now, and I could follow in his footsteps. Stuart Smally rocks!

Laurie

kevxross · #21 07/11/2006, 07:15 PM

To complete the correction, deep thoughts were by Jack Handey.

Quote:

Laurie got offended that I used the word "puke." But to me, that's what her dinner tasted like.

greenstarman · #22 07/11/2006, 07:23 PM

Its not the Orange Envy that costs so much, its the stinking price of gas that you are paying for to fly it to the U.S.

jessiesgrrl · #23 07/11/2006, 07:32 PM

ROTFL, I can't believe you found that!! I'm 31... my parents watched that and we (My sister and I) used to sit on the stairs after we were supposed to be in bed and peek through the banister to see it. No wonder I can't get it right!

Laurie

Greencup · #24 07/14/2006, 11:41 PM

Thats insane... Who would pay that?

ribs · #25 08/31/2006, 12:24 AM

Bump.......up another $100 per polyp @ $600 ea.