Robert Book wrote: >I think we are leaving something out here. Many people, or at least >many Americans, seem highly offended at the notion of having to pay to >use a toilet. ... such people have a strong disutility >associated with paying for the toilet, to the point that they are >willing to pay a little extra for the goods sold at the establishment.
Plausible, but then the question is: *why* do people have a disutility of paying for toilets? Does this fit into any pattern of the sorts of things people have a disutility of paying for? Tim James wrote: >Probably because of what some Burger King guy called the "veto-vote." >Let's say you have a group of four or five people, and one has to use the >bathroom. They are in an area with a McD's and a Burger King, but the >McDonalds charges $0.25 to use the facilities. Burger King, on the other >hand, is free. Which are they more likely to stop at? BK. And the other >four people are likely to buy some fries, a soda, whatever. A creative suggestion, but it seems to require a correlation between people who don't want to eat and people who want to use the bathroom. That sort of correlation is what makes your veggie burger example work. Robin Hanson [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://hanson.gmu.edu Asst. Prof. Economics, George Mason University MSN 1D3, Carow Hall, Fairfax VA 22030-4444 703-993-2326 FAX: 703-993-2323
