Street Vending: The Solution to All Our Problems
Did you recently lose your job at an investment bank or hedge fund? Help is on the way! A group of City Council members and community activists are now lobbying to increase the number of street vending permits the city hands out each year. They say adjusting the cap on the number of permits in circulation will reduce the city's growing unemployment rate. And they've got historical precedent to point to, too, such as World War I and the Great Depression.
How a sudden increase in the number of street vendors will benefit New York City residents isn't clear—do people really want to be able to buy fake Rolex watches and sunglasses on every corner in town?—but if the vending laws are changed, and you're looking for a new line of work, your banking experience may come in handy. According to Professor John Garber, a sociologist and an expert on matters such as these, "Street vending is bare-bones economics, supply and demand." In other words, the fact you took Econ 101 as an undergrad will help, but your MBA remains worthless.
