http://www.lonegunman.co.uk/2008/12/22/the-inefficiency-of-christmas-gifts/ Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:29:41 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.lonegunman.co.uk/2008/12/22/the-inefficiency-of-christmas-gifts/comment-page-1/#comment-1084 Link Banana » Christmas Letdown Sat, 27 Dec 2008 00:06:56 +0000 http://www.lonegunman.co.uk/?p=1262#comment-1084 [...] Lloyd point to one of things I find so frustrating about gift exchanges: The most conservative estimate put the average receiver’s valuation at 90% of the buying price. The missing 10% is what economists call a deadweight loss: a waste of resources that could be averted without making anyone worse off. In other words, if the giver gave the cash value of the purchase instead of the gift itself, the recipient could then buy what she really wants, and be better off for no extra cost. [...] […] Lloyd point to one of things I find so frustrating about gift exchanges: The most conservative estimate put the average receiver’s valuation at 90% of the buying price. The missing 10% is what economists call a deadweight loss: a waste of resources that could be averted without making anyone worse off. In other words, if the giver gave the cash value of the purchase instead of the gift itself, the recipient could then buy what she really wants, and be better off for no extra cost. […]

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