[maxander]

Well, yes, that’s how supply and demand (supposedly) works. The “correct” price is where the demand, at that price, equals the available supply.

If the product is scarce, that can drive up the price, but only as far as demand is willing to follow- there’s no inherent value in being scarce. “Price” is a social thing, so of course it’s determibed by social forces.

[yholio]

To illustrate your point: if I paint an unique painting of myself sitting on the toilet, that's quite a scarce item, there is only one in the world, yet, it's utterly worthless.

Purely social forces somehow came to the (in my opinion, debatable) conclusion that ladies with square faces painted by Picasso are art, while a representation of defecation by me is not.