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> There are thousands of examples of middlemen and industries that provide values to themselves only. Care to name a few? These are great startup opportunitie

• vasilipupkin 11y ago
  car dealers, real estate agents
  • drdeca 11y ago
    Don't those provide the service of helping to distribute goods? That seems like saying that grocery stores don't provide any value because they just buy the food and then sell it to you? Or, alternatively, like saying FEDEX doesn't provide any value because they just bring things from one place to another (buying it from one place for $0 (plus an agreement) and then selling it to you for $[0+x] (and also the fulfilment of the agreement) , or alternatively, buying it from you for an agreement and $[0-x], and selling it somewhere else for $0 and the fulfilment of the agreement)?
    • vasilipupkin 11y ago
      well, you could buy cars online from manufacturers. That's why every state has laws prohibiting this. If car dealers added a lot of value, you wouldn't need laws that stop people from competing with them
• beagle3 11y ago
  Gas station employees in New Jersey (where it is illegal for you to fill up your own tank) Doctors in New York, where it is illegal (!) for you to request a medical test, only for a doctor on your behalf - and the results go only to him (not sure if he is allowed to refuse to show them to you - but I suspect he is). Most HOAs in the US, those in Texas being especially egregious. Car Dealerships in states where you must go through them (Tesla has been fighting this; consider the absurdity in that Tesla is allowed to ship you a car from another state, but not sell it in that state). Various government agencies I will not name so that I don't get on their [s]hitlist.