Popcorn is a delicious snack, I think we can all agree on that, no? In fact, pretty much every snack at the movie theater is downright scrumptious - be they Junior Mints, Goobers, or the delightful SnoCaps (my personal favorite).  And there isn't a much better way to get a break from all the seriousness of the world - what with the Federal Reserve destroying our currency while the government takes away our freedoms and such - than to sit down and mindlessly shove snacks into my face while watching the movin' pictures.  And that's probably about where the similarities end between myself and fellow movie and snacking aficionado, Michigan's Joshua Thompson.  You see, Mr. Thompson loves to go the movies. He also loves to eat popcorn. But he hates paying those crazy high prices, particularly the ones charged by the evil movie overlords at AMC.  In fact, he was so enraged by the price of snacks at AMC Theaters that he has actually hired a lawyer and filed a class-action lawsuit against AMC.  And no, this is not an article from The Onion, I swear. Go ahead and click on the link if you don't believe me!

Mmmmm..SnoCaps...if only I could afford them!

Of course, filing a lawsuit and attempting to use the the armed thuggery of the State to get what one wants has become the American Way.  And it often works, as we've seen with such frivolous lawsuits as the infamous "hot coffee" suit against McDonald's, in which a jury awarded $160,000 plus $2.7 million in punitive damages to a woman who spilled hot coffee on herself.  There are certainly legitimate reasons to file a lawsuit against a corporation - if it violates a contract, infringes on one''s property rights, etc.  However, in the view of Mr. Thompson and other statists like him, the mere act of charging more for a product than he would like to pay is reason enough.Mr. Thompson has several options if he doesn't like the prices of the snacks at AMC Theaters.  His options include: 1) Don't go to AMC Theaters , 2) Don't buy snacks at the theater, or he could be even more of an activist and 3) Organize a boycott against AMC Theaters.  Of course, I think Option 3 would be quite silly as well, but if it makes him feel better and affects the change in prices he'd like to see, then why not! Instead Mr. Thompson has chosen Option 4: Use the State to try to force AMC Theaters to charge him the prices he deems appropriate.  The key word here is "force" , and it is a word anathema to liberty.  Once you get on board with the State doing your dirty work for you, you are endorsing the use of force, be it against  a corporation or a person it is essentially the same. (And PLEASE PLEASE don't bombard me with comments about "corporate personhood" and this and that ... I'm not saying corporations are people. I am saying force is force, whether it's used against a corporation or an individual. This concludes the parenthetical defensive portion of this blog post, we now return to your regularly scheduled ranting.)Here's the thing about movie theaters: they are called "movie theaters", not "cheap ass candy shoppes".  If you want cheap candy, go to Target.  (And in a world where I would condone such things, you could even sneak that candy into the movie theater. You know, if we lived in a world like that.) What's funny about the business model of movie theaters is that the flip side is actually true in terms of how they make their profits.  Most of the money theaters make on ticket sales go right back to the movie studios.  Much like with Last Vegas Casinos, they just want to get you in the door.  Theaters make the vast majority of their profits by the "overcharging" for candy that Mr. Thompson so abhors.  I don't like the movie theater prices anymore than Mr. Thompson does, but I also recognize that I am under no obligation to buy candy from them.It's simple economics. If enough people don't buy candy from AMC and other theaters, then the price of the snacks would drop.  Yet they haven't, which means that enough patrons are purchasing the snacks to justify the price, which in turn means they aren't "overcharging", as Mr. Thompson claims, but merely charging the price that makes the most sense in order to turn the highest profit. Uh oh, I said another dirty word! But yes, it's true: the purpose of a business is to make a profit by providing a service. In this case, AMC Theaters provides a large screen in which it's patrons can watch first-run movies, and the option to pay what most would call excorbitant prices for snacks.  At no point is Mr. Thompson being forced to go to the theater, forced to buy candy, or forced to pay those high prices.So, Mr. Thompson is looking to use force to extract candy from AMC Theaters at a cheaper price than what they are offering.  Meanwhile, AMC Theaters isn't trying to force Mr. Thompson to do anything at all! They merely open their doors, post the prices for movies and snacks, and let the patrons make up their minds. AMC is not seeking to use force in any way, shape or form.  So in the Case of Entitled Statist Michigander vs. Profit-Seeking Corporation, this Lion of liberty has to rule in favor of the Corporation.My advice to Mr. Thompson: Drop your lawsuit, stay home, eat some veggies, and get a Netflix account. You'll spend less money, be healthier and won't have that sticky film of Statism oozing all over you.  And if that doesn't work, try watching an awesome Ron Paul speech or two! Ron Paul cured me of Statism - he can cure you too!Receive access to ALL of our EXCLUSIVE bonus audio content – including “Conspiracy Corner”, “Degenerate Gamblers” and the “League of Liberty Podcast” by joining the Lions of Liberty Pride and supporting us on Patreon!