There’s a thin line between ludicrous profits and extortion of the needy…but where is it at?

Price gouging is a somewhat difficult thing to form a black and white opinion on. On one hand I would be tempted to say that its unethical and wrong to do, but when you think about it, the suppliers in a price gouging situation have the right to charge whatever they want; no one is forcing the consumers to buy the product. The suppliers do have extra costs and there are more risks involved, so to some extent higher prices should be expected in disasters. However, just because one has the right to do something doesn't necessarily mean that they should. Even though no one would be forcing consumers to pay $20 for a bottle of water in the aftermath of a disaster, the consumers do need the water so they're options are limited: pay the price and live or keep they're money and die. If decent people where operating during a situation like this, one would expect a reasonable profit to be made as well as somewhat higher prices, for a time, simply to cover the suppliers extra costs. One would also expect the consumers to have they're needs met at a reasonable price and without being taken advantage of.