The Inequality of Girl Scout Cookies

This NYT article on the Girl Scouts and their cookies is just too weird. First, the poor kids/parents stuck with excess aren't supposed to use eBay to recoup their losses because the whole cookie selling ordeal really is all about learning "social skills and confidence from the experience." And by "social skills" they mean dealing with surly customers. To drive the "it's not about the money" point home it seems that the "boots on the ground" don't get to keep much of what they take in as the profits are skimmed at the top.

Mr. Berger says he is frustrated by the slow earnings rate of the cookies, especially compared with the rate for popcorn and peanuts that his son's Boy Scout troop sells each year. "The Boy Scouts here keep 35 percent of the purchase price," he said. "The Girl Scouts keep only 17 percent. So what are they teaching the girls — that it's O.K. to work just as hard and make less money?"

Sounds like a hard lesson of the "real world" to me. Don't worry though, you can find Thin Mints on eBay.