The term "Price Gouging" normally applies whenever an essential item, such as food or gasoline, is priced far beyond its usual price under emergency conditions to take advantage of a situation in which the purchaser has no choice. There were some reported cases of both gasoline and bottled water price gouging in the Houston area as a result of the recent hurricane. It doesn't work so well in normal circumstances, especially regarding guns and other discretionary items, as the law of supply and demand sets prices.