Price hike rant

[03cavPA]

OK, let's hear it. Sky's the limit.

What kinds of prices have gone up where you are? (what hasn't?)

I just went grocery shopping with my wife. Holy shit. I haven't seen those kinds of prices before, and I've done some grocery shopping myself in the past month, so I'm not entirely clueless.

I just went to order some computer stuff from geeks.com and I swear the shipping charges have doubled. Once I saw the shipping, I emptied my cart. I'll buy it in a brick and mortar near here. Stuff that. Even at 3.19/gal, I can still save some money if I go get it myself in my 36 mpg car.

My heating oil was locked in at 2.99/gal at the beginning of the season.

It looks to me like everybody used Jan 1 as a good time to hike prices to start ass-raping us even further. AFAIC, they might want to meet us in the middle and bite the bullet with lower increases to sell us the goods. I can do without some stuff in protest.

I'm going to start crunching some numbers and look more closely at ordering from online retailers. If it's still cheaper to go get it elsewhere now that they've hiked shipping, then they'll do without my business. Yeah, yeah, I know my time is worth a lot, but it's a principle thing now, damnit. I can bundle my trips to save money.

['97ventureowner]

Sounds like my rant from the "economic stimulus" thread

Originally Posted by '97ventureowner

You got that right brother Not only has gas prices increased since 2001, just over the past few months I have been shocked at the price of food. I do most of the grocery shopping for the house and just in the past few weeks I've noticed many items have gone up , a lot. For instance I was buying an 18 pack of eggs for .99 cents at this time last year. Last week the price on them was $2.99 Many other "staple" foods have gone up .25 to .75 cents+, and when you add it up over your total purchase, it really shows the increase.
It seems like January 1st was a good reason for many suppliers and retailers to use as an excuse to raise their prices. I know other factors come into play such as labor, insurances, transportation costs, etc. But wow, I haven't seen prices go up that fast since the '70s and early '80s.

If you're careful and do your research online, you can get deals. Competition is a good thing causing some sites to keep their shipping charges on the low end. Shop around online and you might find a site that has better prices/terms. I did most of my Christmas shopping online and got good rates for shipping with many sites offering free shipping on certain days or if your purchase amount exceeded a certain price.
There was a little blurb in one of our grocery store circulars about the cost of flour ending up increasing the overall price of bread and bakery made cakes. Part of the blame is a shortage of wheat caused by drought and many farmers switching their crops from wheat to corn, with government assistance to do so. This also affects other things we buy such as milk,( and it's associated products - ice cream, butter, cheese, etc) meat,including poultry, pork, and beef, and other foods that can suffer from a shortage of wheat/corn. Sure the farmers are growing more corn , but most of it is not making it's way into animal feeds or as an ingredient in other items we buy.
I just hope retailers don't try to take advantage of their customers when these "rebate" checks start getting into their hands and raise prices for items in their stores.

[speediva]

Just wait until you hear what the PA Turnpike Commission wants... they want to start charging tolls on I-80 now!!! Great idea, folks... let's make it so you can't drive the 5 hours across the state without paying an arm and a leg, or turning your trek into a 15 hour deal through back country roads. Just brilliant.

I pretty much have taken to only buying things in a physical store, and at that, I won't go out unless I have several things to do in the same area. And people wonder why we are headed for a recession.

[03cavPA]

Yeah, I've heard that about I-80, but it sounds like it's still up in the air. Since I live in the Northern tier, anywhere I need to get to across the state can still be reached fairly easily by taking NY 17 (I-86) and then swooping south from Erie, but they'll find a way to toll the shit out of everywhere pretty soon.

If these guys keep cranking things up, they might find that we'll just keep biting the bullet until we hit a full bore recession like they've never seen. I can't force my employer to give me a raise every time the consumer index ramps up (they're too busy raping healthcare for every dollar they can squeeze out of payors, while cutting staffing to the bone and beyond).

ventureowner, I thought I remembered a similar rant from a little while ago. You can add my spewings to yours if you wish. LOL.

It looks like us "normal" folks are going to have to stop supporting the consumer economy so much. I think corporate America is killing off its own customers.

That "tax rebate"? pshaw, I'm not spending it. I'll keep using my present computer gear/autos/consumer electronics until they no longer function. No new toys for me. F them.

['97ventureowner]

Originally Posted by speediva

Just wait until you hear what the PA Turnpike Commission wants... they want to start charging tolls on I-80 now!!! Great idea, folks... let's make it so you can't drive the 5 hours across the state without paying an arm and a leg, or turning your trek into a 15 hour deal through back country roads. Just brilliant.

Sounds like what they're doing here in NY. The Thruway Authority raised tolls on the Thruway 10% January 1st, and is trying to pass additional 10% increases to take effect 1/1/09 and 1/1/10. They have no oversight and can do whatever they want. Governor Spitzer had asked them to hold off on the increase that just took effect and to not raise tolls again after that, but they didn't seem to care. It's just one more "nail in the coffin" in attempts to make NY more business and industry friendly by lowering taxes and fees. Couple that with some of the highest fuel taxes in the nation and that leads to a double punch to the industry. Trucking companies have started shying away from using the Thruway over the past 15 years , instead they are using other routes to get to their destinations and rumbling through small towns in record numbers. Some of those town governments are either passing or are attempting to pass laws to restrict these trucks from going through these small villages and towns. Many of these trucks are garbage trucks from NYC on their way to a landfill near Rochester and they spew trash all over the place where they go through.
The Thruway Authority has grown so large over the years, and Governor Spitzer has asked the state Comptroller to audit their books and look for anything out of the usual. Pretty good to raise tolls on a highway system built in the 1950s with bonds that were supposed to be paid off back in 1996, thus making the Thruway toll free. But the Thruway Authority saw fit to keep the tolls and use the excuse of upkeep and maintenance as a reason to keep the tolls . They constantly are coming up with these big projects to "improve" the Thruway in an attempt to keep the tolls from being removed.