Nickel and Dimed

Grandma's Lye Soap labels,
March 2011 & Jan. 2011
____________________

There's an old joke about a whorehouse called "Granny's Place" made of the usual dirty stuff with the punchline, "You just got screwed by granny!" That was then, this is now.

It is a small point to make but illustrative of the larger realities in the U.S. (Higher Food Prices are Here to Stay). A Cracker Barrel product will be our example, as that establishment portrays itself as the purveyor of all things down home (ignoring for the moment the fact that most of the tchotchkes they sell, like quilts and harmonicas, are actually Made in China.) But witness, Grandma's Pure Lye Soap, which is usually in Ranger's soap dish (not the SF variety).

The soap appeared more petite in size this month, and the label told the story: Within three months, Granny's soap has downsized 9%, from 6.6 oz. (185 grams) to 6 ozs. (170 grams) -- but with no concomitant decrease in price. This is a surreptitious example of 9% inflation, and this is not an isolated event.

Examples abound everyday of getting less but paying more (or the same), therefore we are suffering devaluation of the dollar on a micro level with every reduced-size purchase. This is such a clear example of hidden daily inflation, yet we are told there is no inflation and therefore, no forthcoming Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA).

We are being treated to the Chinese death of a thousand cuts through this nickle and dime-ing. We are all getting screwed by Granny. and there is no indication we will pull out of this nosedive anytime soon.

No COLA For You

Since a politician never believes
what he says, he is quite surprised
to be taken at his word
--Charles De Gaulle

A dream is a wish your heart makes
when you're fast asleep
In dreams you lose your heartaches
Whatever you wish for, you keep
--A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes,
Cinderella

The shape of things to come
--advert for TR-7 (1974)
___________

The story of postage hikes to take effect Jan. 2012 just reminds us of the imbalance in our current abysmal economic climate.

Fighting to survive a deepening financial crisis, the Postal Service said Tuesday it wants to increase the price of first-class stamps by 2 cents — to 46 cents — starting in January. Other postage costs would rise as well.

. . .

The price to send periodicals would go up about 8 percent, and other rates for advertising mail, parcels and services would rise by varying amounts. ... [P]ostage costs would rise an average of 5 percent (Stamp Prices Going up Again -- 46-cent Rate Asked).

The USPS is a microcosm of things to come. At our local postal station, waits can be upwards of 45 minutes, even during off-ours. This is due to staff reductions -- a cost-saving measure you see implemented at numerous businesses. Now, we get to pay more money for a reduction in services.

Meanwhile, Social Security recipients suffer no Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for 2010 or 2011. The story is, there is no inflation, even though the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 5.9 percent in fiscal year 2009 -- the index which COLA is usually tied to. This is the first time in 35 years there has been no COLA.

Sadly, the official line is belied every time one empties one's basket and runs one's good through checkout in the supermarket. But politicians don't engage in such quotidian tasks, so -- pity -- they don't understand the hits the average consumer feels on a daily basis.

Why does the USPS get, in effect, a COLA because they cannot make it, yet the fiction is imposed that a COLA is not needed by Social Security recipients?

No COLA for You

Consumer Price Index --Inflation Forecasts

I do believe in spooks!
I do believe in spooks!
I do! I do! I do!
--Wizard of Oz (1939)

Drinkin' rum and Coca-Cola
Go down Point Koomahnah
Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar
--Rum and Coca Cola, Andrews Sisters

War is so unjust and ugly that all who wage it
must try to stifle the voice of conscience within themselves
--Leo Tolstoy
_______________

Ranger has been receiving notices from Social Services, Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense explaining there will be no Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) for 2010, and possibly 2011. The official line is, There is no inflation according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), so -- voila! -- no COLA.

Why aren't we getting COLA? If we can siphon off hundreds of billions of dollars for a phony war in Afghanistan, surely we must have enough to help our own citizens?

This doesn't seem correct since everything is costing more. How can things cost more if there is no inflation? The undeniable fact is, the tab at the grocer's rises weekly, as does the cost of fuel, and taxes and other sundry official fees. The states, many of which are cutting public services precipitously in order to stay afloat, have been rapidly increasing all types of taxes.

The inflation forecast according to the Federal Planning Bureau, which updates it's data the first Tuesday of each month (so these are today's figures): "Based on the monthly inflation forecasts, average consumer price inflation should be 1.6% in 2010, compared to -0.05% in 2009 and 4.49% in 2008. The average growth rate of the so-called "health price index", used for the price indexation of wages, social benefits and house-rent, should be 1.2% in 2010, compared to 0.59% in 2009 and 4.22% in 2008."

So, if the inflation forecast for 2010 is 1.6% (revised upward from last month's figure), why are we not receiving lawfully-mandated COLA increases? 1.6% is not ZED.

There is money for wars and health care reform, but NADA for COLA. This amounts to thievery and deceit, as it imposes a hidden tax upon a sizable portion of our society. Yet nobody even whimpers. Why is Glenn Beck not blubbering Walrus tears over this outrage?

Are we so used to being officially screwed that we are happy when the tiniest bit of lubricant is used? The lubricant is the lie that there will be no inflation in 2010. We all know that we are spending more to get less of the items that are essential to maintain our lives.

1.6% rate of inflation means $127.50 is being clipped from my entitlements, and therefore, stolen from my accounts each month. Multiply this across the board and we are talking serious money. And Bernie Madoff sits in jail. What did he do that government is not doing to all of us?

We working folks are so used to being trick fucked that we do not even bother to complain anymore. We're just happy when it's only the head that gets stuck in our asses.