People, not surprisingly, choose immediate over delayed gratification. Faced with lower prices today vs. eroded tax base at some point in the future... Pretty

People, not surprisingly, choose immediate over delayed gratification. Faced with lower prices today vs. eroded tax base at some point in the future... Pretty simple choice, which is why Wal-Mart is as big as it is. And if you ask people to pay for a nebulous benefits that might go to others, they won't pay. It's also why medium-end stereo stores died, why most computers are plastic pieces of crap and I can't get a belt that doesn't delaminate in a few months.