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Location: where you sip the tea of the breasts of the spinsters of Utica
8,297 posts, read 14,206,730 times
Reputation: 8105
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Quote:
Originally Posted by montanamom
A factor that has not been mentioned here, is the subsidizing of the grocery market by the federal government, in the form of a huge increase in food stamps issued.
Not here to argue the moral/social factors about food stamps, but anytime the government subsidizes anything, the costs go up for those of us who are paying for it "out-of-pocket". The food companies don't care if those of us trying to stick to a budget bypass their rising prices. There are enough people being subsidized out there to take up the slack.
As usual, those at the top and bottom of the 'totem pole" reap the benefits. The average working people in the middle pay the tab.
Just the opposite on food prices, the more food is purchased, the more efficient the grocery system becomes - economies of scale. That's why a supermarket is cheaper than a convenience store, they can buy larger amounts and get a quantity discount, and can still make a profit with smaller margins.
Do taxes necessarily have to go up to pay for food stamp programs? Not necessarily, they're a relatively small part of the national budget, and there are truly wasteful expenditures in that budget. Food stamps prevent starvation and thus ward off one thing that greatly increases quality of life, and helps distinguish us from thirdworld countries. On the other hand, our military spends more than the next 20 nations, including Russia, China, and Europe COMBINED. We could easily cut 2/3 of the military budget without reducing our defensive capabilities, and then be able to pay for food stamps AND national health care.
So does that mean housing costs have fallen 25% for everyone? Woohooo! Someone forgot to tell my landlord, I'll have to call him today.
I didn't say that housing costs fell by 25%. I said that housing costs are 25% of the basket of goods (CPI) that determine overall inflation. The fact that your rent has not increased means that 25% of your overall inflation basket has remained stable.
The error that many make is that they look at one item that has risen and conclude that inflation is up, while at the same time other items have not risen or fallen.
Location: where you sip the tea of the breasts of the spinsters of Utica
8,297 posts, read 14,206,730 times
Reputation: 8105
I didn't say anything at all about the inflation rate, MTA, nor is this a thread about general inflation. My concern is that my personal grocery bill has increased substantially in January, though it had remained fairly stable last year (other than coffee, which went up a few months ago).
I hope it goes down too but if it doesn't it's not going to make much of an impact. Let's say coffee is $7 a pound and it increased by 20%, which makes it $8.40. A pound of coffee makes about 40 cups, which lasts about a month per person. So, it will cost a couple of bucks more a month -- until coffee prices fall again. Coffee prices aren't nearly as significant as gasoline prices, which a ten cent change per gallon will drive up the cost of a tank by a couple of bucks.
coffee is very seldom sold in 1 lb. containers anymore...unless you fresh grind your own...
neither do the prices go down and stay that way...if there is a price drop it uasually means
the price is do for another increase shortly...at least that is what I have seen more times than not...
can anyone name something where the price has gone down and stayed that way? just wondering
coffee is very seldom sold in 1 lb. containers anymore...unless you fresh grind your own...
neither do the prices go down and stay that way...if there is a price drop it uasually means
the price is do for another increase shortly...at least that is what I have seen more times than not...
can anyone name something where the price has gone down and stayed that way? just wondering
My observation is that there is a good sale right before the item goes up and stays up. I think they must do that to get rid of the old stock, so there is nothing to compare it to. If all the old is gone, then we don't really realize that now we are paying the same price for 13oz that we previously paid for 16oz. JMHO
Location: where you sip the tea of the breasts of the spinsters of Utica
8,297 posts, read 14,206,730 times
Reputation: 8105
Quote:
Originally Posted by leftmyheartintennessee
coffee is very seldom sold in 1 lb. containers anymore...unless you fresh grind your own...
neither do the prices go down and stay that way...if there is a price drop it uasually means
the price is do for another increase shortly...at least that is what I have seen more times than not...
can anyone name something where the price has gone down and stayed that way? just wondering
Chicken, in terms of absolute dollars since around 1960. I've seen old ads ..... it cost as much per pound for a whole bird as it does now, even though the purchasing price of a dollar has decreased dramatically.
Chicken, in terms of absolute dollars since around 1960. I've seen old ads ..... it cost as much per pound for a whole bird as it does now, even though the purchasing price of a dollar has decreased dramatically.
Good point.
Shrimp used to be a delicacy in the 1960s. Now, it's a staple.
Chicken, in terms of absolute dollars since around 1960. I've seen old ads ..... it cost as much per pound for a whole bird as it does now, even though the purchasing price of a dollar has decreased dramatically.
I'm not sure I understand the absolute dollars theory(?)thinking(?)
I can remember growing up in the late 60's whole chickens were selling for
19 to 29 cents a lb...now you won't find them for anything less that 87 to 98 cents a lb...SORRY, I don't live in abstracts thinking but in the here and now...and I don't see the correlation or whatever the terminology is...
I just know that each month we spend a set amount for groceries and come home with less food to put away...In order to bring home the same amount of food we normally consume each month we have to spend an additional $50-$60 each time...which means we have to cut back
somehow elsewhere to make up the difference...
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Woohooo! Someone forgot to tell my landlord, I'll have to call him today.
