In the school of economics that I was taught, it is called the 'opportunity cost' of things both material and immaterial. When people desire something, they pay for it. The more they desire it, the more they will pay. This applies even to immaterial things such as, say, counseling. In times of personal crisis resulting from some emergency, securing an appointment with a counselor or psychotherapist is difficult - too many people lining up at too few counselor's offices. You cannot simply churn out more counselors in a hurry, as that takes time. Counselor appointments are scarce.
It is the same but different with physical things - especially those things which pertain to our survival, professions, daily life, hobbies and even our fears. Physical objects that are directly or indirectly related to our survival and self defense - either from starvation (food) infection (Lysol) or invasion (home and personal security). The reverse side of the coin might be called "supply gouging" as sellers cannot obtain their wares at any cost. It all revolves around the concept of scarcity. We see that different oxen are being gored.
Consider salt. It's everywhere on this earth. The price of salt did not (generally) rise in response to covid or civil violence. There is generally plenty for everyone and salt is not as subject to the shortages we see in materials and products which are scarce. In times of crisis, scarcity abounds due to uncertainty and "binge buying." "Temporarily out of stock" and "Sold out" are commonly seen. We we able to predict the outcome of future events, we could rest assured that we had enough on hand and would not waste our resources (money) on excess goods.
Scarcirty comes and goes. There are still more than enough "pet rocks" for the market. No one wants them - demand for pet rocks died down decades ago - and this points to the fickle nature of the human being. The very concept is absolutely ludicrous, but millions bought them and millions were made by the producers at very low cost to them. Rocks are like salt in that regard, but how to increase demand for salt? Bullets, cases, primers, ammo fall far outside of the salt category.
What to make of all this? We cannot fish when the tide is out, but we can beach comb or dig clams to our hearts desire. When tide is in, we quickly switch to fishing. Scarcity, like tides, is temporary and directs our behavior. Those who appear to be hoarders in good times are likewise seen as prudent or prophetic in times of scarcity. Patience will get us through and patience is what we often lack.
A large cup's worth of French roast thought here.
