Who are the selfish panick buyers?

[Metro-One]

So in the interior of BC store shelves have gone bare despite the supermarkets and the trucking associations assuring people that shipments will be coming in essentially as normal.

Like, didn’t these people learn anything after they bought truck loads of toilet paper last year despite in the end there being no problems?

Wish I was a store owner in these situations. The first sign I would post on my windows in an emergency is “no panicky selfish morons allowed” and put limitations on how many of the same item people can buy.

What smart considerate people do is they have emergency packs ready in their house or slowly build up and maintain emergency supplies bought during times of no emergency (real or perceived)

[WhipperSnapper]

It's probably not worth upsetting stupid, selfish, inconsiderate morons although it would the best thing for our future. This minority stereotype (the hoarding is probably more inclusive) has far too much of a voice and power over common sense and the majority.

[SpongeG]

the government is going to enact something that will put limits on things apparently.

Groceries will have no problem coming from the east to those in the interior.

[FarmerHaight]

I think panic buying is closely related to FOMO. It may only take a few dozen people who begin the panic buying, but then other shoppers, their neighbors, their colleagues, their family and friends, etc. see and/or hear about them "stocking up", and then they join the party because who wants to be the last person to "stock up"? There will be nothing left!

People may also see the empty gas station shelves in the truly cut-off communities like Hope and think that is coming to Kamloops or Kelowna, even though those cities can still be accessed from the United States and Alberta, or by aircraft.

[someone123]

It's easy to conflate a few different things in this area:

1) People who go out and buy large quantities to resell, like the ones taking their truck to Costco to fill with toilet paper during the early pandemic to make a profit. This is price gouging/profiteering.
2) People who get nervous and buy things to hoard for themselves but more than they will really need (6 month supply of toilet paper due to flooding in BC right now).
3) People who just need something and go to the store, and maybe notice they are short on things around the time of a disaster.

The store shelves can also empty out due to normal buying when they're not being restocked. This was true of some places around here of products that can't really be hoarded, like fresh produce.

So basically (1) is bad though probably something the stores need to ban, (2) is again probably up to stores and officials to clearly communicate what's going on, and (3) is sometimes just a normal unavoidable process (you can't just look at pictures of lineups or empty produce shelves and decide a bunch of people were doing 1/2). I'm not sure the stores are all that robust to shifting demand either. A store can't necessarily restock the next day if 2x the customers show up without warning one day.

[whatnext]

Probably the same idiots who hoarded toilet paper in Spring 2020 even though Metro Vancouver has a toilet paper mill.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by FarmerHaight

I think panic buying is closely related to FOMO. It may only take a few dozen people who begin the panic buying, but then other shoppers, their neighbors, their colleagues, their family and friends, etc. see and/or hear about them "stocking up", and then they join the party because who wants to be the last person to "stock up"? There will be nothing left!

People may also see the empty gas station shelves in the truly cut-off communities like Hope and think that is coming to Kamloops or Kelowna, even though those cities can still be accessed from the United States and Alberta, or by aircraft.

Part of the problem is that emergency preparedness education that has been given in the past specifically has told people to "stock up" for emergencies. And at the beginning of the pandemic, Dr. Tam did specifically tell people to stock up on essentials so that they could potentially quarantine for 14 days; this was a major and often-forgotten source of panic buying in March 2020.

[FarmerHaight]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

Part of the problem is that emergency preparedness education that has been given in the past specifically has told people to "stock up" for emergencies. And at the beginning of the pandemic, Dr. Tam did specifically tell people to stock up on essentials so that they could potentially quarantine for 14 days; this was a major and often-forgotten source of panic buying in March 2020.

I can't believe some people think "stocking up" requires 96 rolls of toilet paper and countless amounts of produce, meat, and dairy that spoils in a week...

Grab 12 rolls of TP, some cans of Campbell's chunky, and some powdered milk.

[rofina]

Originally Posted by FarmerHaight

I can't believe some people think "stocking up" requires 96 rolls of toilet paper and countless amounts of produce, meat, and dairy that spoils in a week...

Grab 12 rolls of TP, some cans of Campbell's chunky, and some powdered milk.

The whole thing is so illogical.

If you think you're in a situation dire enough where you need to panic buy, then buying perishable foods, especially ones that spoil immediately like meat and dairy, is ridiculous.

Canned goods, flour, dried goods. Etc.

But then again, this never was about logic.

[giallo]

Originally Posted by rofina

The whole thing is so illogical.

If you think you're in a situation dire enough where you need to panic buy, then buying perishable foods, especially ones that spoil immediately like meat and dairy, is ridiculous.

Canned goods, flour, dried goods. Etc.

But then again, this never was about logic.

These panic buyers are clearly not smart enough to even know the difference between the words perishable and non-perishable.

There are some real 'galaxy brains' in the Interior.

[davee930]

Everywhere, I'm surrounded by morons.

[Architype]

Voluntary gas rationing has now been introduced in Vancouver (all of Southwestern BC), so cue the lineup of panic buyers.

Non-essential vehicles, including the general public, will be limited to 30 litres per trip at retail gas stations

https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-r...ng-gas-drivers

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by Architype

Voluntary gas rationing has now been introduced in Vancouver (all of Southwestern BC), so cue the lineup of panic buyers.


https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-r...ng-gas-drivers

I’ve already seen massive lineups outside a gas station in my neighbourhood and a fist fight break out outside, though it wasn’t clear if the fight was connected to the gas station.

[SpongeG]

I have to get gas today, I was down to a 1/4 tank so was due anyway. I will have to switch to SkyTrain for most travel now which is ok.

I had to get milk today, the selection was getting quite low and the shelf was about 65% empty. Other than that I haven't noticed much difference yet.