Source: Bet On It
by Bryan Caplan
“I have a massive collection of music CDs, about 4,000 in total. Over the years, I probably spent about $40,000 acquiring them. Now, thanks to streaming, they’re virtually worthless. While perusing the used CD section at Amoeba Music (both the LA and Berkeley locations), I discovered that most of my discs now retail for about $3. I doubt Amoeba would pay me $1 a disc, assuming they’d take them at all. Applying familiar NIMBY logic, you might insist that streaming ‘hollowed me out.’ Sure, kids can now enjoy unlimited music free of charge. But I’m $40,000 poorer. A victim of cruel progress. A clear-cut ‘loser.’ If I had zero interest in listening to any new-to-me music, that would be a fair, if self-pitying, verdict. Fortunately, I am not dead inside.” (08/26/26)