Jay Leno Freaks Out That The Unemployed Might Prefer Money Over Free Leno Tickets
from the let's-explain-the-free-market... dept
Nearly four years ago, we wrote about Bob Geldof's odd freak-out against eBay when it was discovered that ticketholders to his LiveAid event were selling the tickets on eBay. This was silly for a variety of reasons -- including the misdirected anger at eBay. But, more importantly, we couldn't figure out who this was harming, at all. Geldof had chosen to give out the tickets for free -- and some people preferred to have money rather than the tickets. Others would get the tickets they valued more. Everyone's better off. Where's the problem?Apparently, Jay Leno needs that same lesson, and economist Greg Mankiw is explaining it to him. Leno went to Michigan and gave out free tickets to unemployed workers in the state -- and then complained when people put the tickets up for sale on eBay. Remember, these are unemployed people. For many of them, do you think they'd prefer some extra cash or the opportunity to see Leno live? Hell, do you think they'd be better off with cash or the free trip to Leno? Obviously, some greatly prefer the cash -- and it actually seems quite mean of Leno to try to deny them that cash by demanding that eBay take down the auctions.
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Filed Under: economics, jay leno, tickets, unemployment
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for the joke...
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Same as food stamps
While I am an elitist, I find this attitude of "I know better, therefore I should control your life" crappy.
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Re: Same as food stamps
The only real restrictions on food stamps are that they have to used on food. No alcohol or cigarettes, and certain things like fountain drinks and stuff like that. The idea is to put food in the fridge.
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A gift is a gift
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theme show
But even if that's the case, he should have made that clearer when handing out the tickets.
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On the other hand I can understand someone trying to sell the tickets to earn some extra cash.
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This is about publicity; he was GIVING AWAY tickets. When someone turns that around to selling his free tickets the limelight diminishes. Unfortunately Leno has made a really bad decision here, because I'll avoid watching him over this idiocy.
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Only because he's an idiot. He could easily have gotten good PR out of it. "Look at that, a laid off auto worker sold one of my tickets for a month's rent! Isn't that great? We'll be giving away tickets in Indiana next month to try to help more people." He should have HELPED these people (those who wanted to) sell their tickets by drawing attention to them. "If you want to help some unemployed Americans, go on eBay and buy their Tonight Show tickets." Instead, he looks like a whining stuck up juvenile.
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Oh Well
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Re:
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Makes sense...
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Re: Makes sense...
Did you people hear the best part of Leno's great gift to the people of Detroit? The concerts are being held in a Baldwin Hills venue, not Detroit proper. I think the city of Detroit has a lot more unemployed than anyone in rather upscale Baldwin Hills.
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Re: Re: Makes sense...
Given the F'd up leadership in Detroit, it wouldn't surprise me if he couldn't get Cobo or Joe Louis Arena. As I've said before, there is always more to a story than what you read.
Tee
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Re: Makes sense...
Ever notice how the things Leno does for charity rarely involve his own money?
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Sure, it's not illegal and it should not be illegal but it is in bad taste. Out of the kindness of his heart, Leno gives people a night out that they don't have to pay for. We're not talking about a free $10 movie or bucket of popcorn. This is something that can easily cost a couple of hundred dollars for two. A lot of working people can't afford that let alone the unemployed. And someone wants to resell the tickets that were given to them because they are supposedly out of work or can't otherwise afford them? Tacky, very tacky. There is something more important than making a few extra dollars; dignity.
I guess it's cool to resell the free food you get from the food banks or the soup kitchens, too? I used to be homeless. I know what I'm talking about. I was in a wheelchair and living out of my vehicle. Where I parked is where I slept. I would have eaten cold beans from a can before I would have sold those tickets. People don't do nice things like that too often. You just don't do things like that. It's not right.
Also, you guys are so sure the person who wanted to resell the tickets is jobless. How do you know it wasn't some scalper with a job and money in the bank? You don't. Seriously, things are not always what they seem.
Tee
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Re: Ditto
Ditto.
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Foodstamps for the poor?
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Leno
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Re: Leno
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I can see why Leno is bothered by it. If I give gifts to all of my friends and they turn around and trade it for something else, I would think they were ungrateful.
If I were the unemployed I wouldn't care how ungrateful I seemed because I am just trying to survive at this point.
No reason to come down on either of the groups I don't think. Thanks for the pointless story though.
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Re:
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quote:
"Ever notice how the things Leno does for charity rarely involve his own money?"
Ever notice how charitible donations are tax deductible & therefore taxpayer's ultimately foot the bill while the rich guy ends up paying nothing?? DUMBASS
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monetization of value
Of course a gift DOES come with expectations and strings, that's exactly the idea of the gift.
If my grandma spends two months in knitting me a sweater for Christmas, she is knitting ME a sweater, and I am NOT allowed to sell it to a shop: it's free to be MINE, not to be used for making money. If I am inviting you to dinner, I am inviting YOU: you are NOT allowed to sell this invitation to your smelly neighbor and he is NOT allowed to show up at my place at seven PM and a bottle of cheap wine.
Invitations, like gifts, are not meant to be monetized: your mere act of selling my invitation voids it for both you and your neighbor. For ever. My grandma would be in her right to stop knitting me stuff. For ever. Leno is in his right to refuse admission to his show for tickets sold on ebay, for ever. Values exist that do not stand monetization of their worth, period.
Even if it was legal for tickets to be sold (and I am sure that in the fine print of a free tickets there is something against such rights) it would be very much in bad taste to do so, just like it would be bad taste to sell the sweater or the invitation to my dinner.
Next time you throw a party at your house and buy drinks to a group of friends, what would you think of those of them that sold the rights to strangers for money? And would you let the strangers in?
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Re: monetization of value
>Of course a gift DOES come with expectations and strings, that's exactly the idea of the gift.
Um... no. The idea of a GIFT is to GIVE something to someone. Apparently, kindergarten was not kind to you...
>If my grandma spends two months in knitting me a sweater for Christmas, she is knitting ME a sweater, and I am NOT allowed to sell it to a shop: it's free to be MINE, not to be used for making money.
Says who? Certainly it would be nice of you to keep it and wear it, but there is no law saying you have to. Legally, ou can run directly to the pawn shop and unload it for a bit of cash. Sure, it might upset Grandma, but the bottom line is that it is your sweater, and you can do whatever you want with it.
>If I am inviting you to dinner, I am inviting YOU: you are NOT allowed to sell this invitation to your smelly neighbor and he is NOT allowed to show up at my place at seven PM and a bottle of cheap wine.
Invitations are totally different. No one sells invitations, and if someone uninvited shows up to a private event, they will be refused (look up "Guest List" for details on how invitations work). Irrelevant argument.
>Invitations, like gifts, are not meant to be monetized: your mere act of selling my invitation voids it for both you and your neighbor. For ever.
Let's not confuse invitations and tickets here. They are not the same and they are not comparable.
>My grandma would be in her right to stop knitting me stuff. For ever.
Finally, you have said something correct. However, it has nothing to do with the legality of selling your sweater, and even less to do with your next paragraph.
>Leno is in his right to refuse admission to his show for tickets sold on ebay, for ever.
This is debatable. Unless the tickets (or contract, if there was one) state that the tickets are non-transferable and Leno can prove beyond all doubt that eBay was the source of the tickets, I'd say he does not have the right to refuse admission on those grounds alone.
>Even if it was legal for tickets to be sold (and I am sure that in the fine print of a free tickets there is something against such rights) it would be very much in bad taste to do so, just like it would be bad taste to sell the sweater or the invitation to my dinner.
Since when to legality and good taste coincide? If we're ever in a small elevator together, I can fart as loudly as I want, and while it is certainly in bad taste, it is certainly legal.
Furthermore, Leno and friends can not make the re-selling of tickets illegal simply by writing it on the ticket. They can make it non-transferable, but illegal is another matter entirely.
And since you insist on bringing up your other invalid arguments again, there is no law preventing you from selling your sweater, and you can't sell an invitation anyway.
>Next time you throw a party at your house and buy drinks to a group of friends, what would you think of those of them that sold the rights to strangers for money? And would you let the strangers in?
Rights? What rights? Where did rights come into this?
You mean if I sold tickets, and they showed up with valid ones? Or if I issued private invitations and the uninvited strangers showed up?
Certainly, one could argue that free tickets are more like an invitation, however, I would contend that when a person is invited to an event, it is not possession of the physical invitation that grants them admission- it's who they are (and whether or not they are on the guest list). With a true "ticket", it is just the opposite
So in review:
Good Taste != Law
Tickets != Invitations
Rights != Laws
Your Sweater != Leno Tickets
(Note that that one said "Your Sweater", and not "Grandma's Sweater).
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Re: Re: monetization of value
By definition:
"A gift is a voluntary act which does not require anything in return."
If you give a gift with an expectation then your not truly giving a gift. You are trying to enter into a contract.
A gift, given freely, has no strings attached.
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Geldof and Leno
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Plus like others have said already, you don't know that the person selling the tickets is somebody who was laid off because anybody could get tickets. It very well could have been a scalper.
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leno
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