Salve,
To all of our Italian friends out there. Or Ciao, I suppose, depending on where you are at in that great, storied nation. Hello to all the rest of you out there in Litmock land as well. Yesterday I had an opportunity for the first time in about 12 years, almost to the day, to buy baby formula. I bought it for my youngest son Liam. As luck would have it, Liam eats the exact same formula as his big brother Ray used to, who I bought that formula for 12 years ago. Sadly, the purchase price provided a startling contrast to what this formula cost me just over a decade ago. This got me to thinking about where my country is today and what this world we live in is headed towards in the future.
12 years ago a 23.2 ounce can of this Gerber formula cost me $10.99. Yesterday, the same Gerber formula cost me $24.99, before taxes, which are also higher than they were 12 years ago. Do they put gold in Gerber baby formula these days? Is gold even good for babies? If this is the case, I think I need to start mining in his diapers to cut some costs, but I do not think this is the case.
Speaking of gold, in April of 2000, gold was about $272 an ounce, way down from it’s $800 high in 1980. Today, gold is being traded at $1573 per ounce as I write this, also down from its high of nearly $2000 per ounce last year.
When I shopped for formula 12 years ago I filled my car up with gas, which cost me $1.35 per gallon. Today a gallon of gas costs $3.87 at the Rutters near my home. That day when I shopped I also bought milk and bread. The milk cost me $2.65 a gallon. A loaf of bread cost me .69. Yesterday I also bought milk and bread. I could not afford a gallon of milk at $4.19, so I bought a half gallon at $2.29. The bread cost me $1.49. In every instance, except for milk, prices have risen over 100% in 12 years. The cost of milk has risen well over 50%. Gold, a clear indicator of inflation, has risen over 500%. We’re talking since 2000, not since World War II or 1950.
Yet the government tells me inflation is holding at 2% or so. On what? By no math I’ve ever seen, can you get the prices we have today in 12 years at 2-3% inflation. Now I understand why they’re always teaching “new math” in government run schools. So that when the government tells you that 2+2=entitlements and a welfare state, it makes sense to you, and you say “uhmkay” as drivel drips down your chin while you stand in the bread line waiting for the bread to run out.
12 years ago I made approximately what I make now. A little more, actually. It’s no wonder I, and everyone else I know, am or are always broke. I don’t know anyone today who is better off, fiscally, than they were 4 years ago, let alone 12 years ago. And on top of this, The Fed, by their own admission, under government mandate, has printed at least $1.7 trillion dollars over the past few years with their Quantitative Easing campaigns such as operations Tarp and Twist. More paper in the market means MORE inflation, and who knows how much more, because no one really knows how much money The Fed actually printed. See, they won’t let anyone, anywhere, under any circumstances, look at their books. Ever. Not even Congress, and many, like Ron Paul, have asked to see those books on a number of occasions, but nope, we just have to take their word for it. Because, you know, governments, politicians and their agencies (even the “independent” ones that work at their behest) are always so honest.
NOT.
Anyway, how bad are things going to be 4 years from now? Or in 12 years if, God forbid, I have to buy formula again? The government says there is no inflation problem and we’re not in danger of stagflation. They’re right for once. We’re well past stagflation. We’re deep in chokeflation mode. The economic virus we have suffered from the past few years is now spreading around the Globe like a plague, and for some nations, like Greece, Ireland, Spain, Iceland, et al, this fiscal plague could be fatal. It’s a scary, scary thought, and we, as a people, need to do something about it. Not wait for governments to fix the problem. They’ve been “fixing” it for years. That’s why we’re where we are today. We started with a leaky faucet, the government tried to fix the plumbing, and now we have no water because our pipes are vomiting it all out into the streets. It’s time we start a forum on how to fix this mess before they blow up the house trying to plug in some power tools.
On a happy note, my Baltimore Orioles are in 1st place in May. 12 years ago they lost like 100 games. Got to keep a positive outlook, focus on the good things, you know. Anyway, food for thought.
Till later,
Sayonara.