Is the rate of inflation going crazy or what?

[RECHRGD]

Yes, inflation has and always will be with us regardless of who may be in office.  Even though these guys were getting a bit greedy at my expense, the main point of my thread is the rate of inflation in just the last few years.  When I retired, I thought that I had positioned myself well enough that I would never have to worry about money again.  Now I'm not so sure......

they saw that fancy Charger in the garage and figured you were "good for it"

LOL, I live pretty far out in the country and make sure never to have the Charger exposed when I know people will be coming.  Won't even have a garage sale, which I desperately need to do.......

[Mike DC]

             
 
The Fed has a major spending & regulation problem, nobody with two brain cells would argue against that.


But we need to get used to higher-priced energy.  This change is here to stay.  The lion's share of the increase is caused by geological limitations.  Nothing that Washington (or the Pentagon) can do will put things back the way they were 20 years ago.    

[Tilar]

   
Before Obama the name of the problem was Bush ....... 

 

Maybe so but I don't remember Bush shoving a healthcare mandate down every business owners throat nor do I recall a personal war on coal and coal fired power plants. Fact is the economy will NOT get better as long as the current administration is in power because nobody will spend any money as long as this guy is slithering in the direction he's going. The proof to that (as I see it) is that stocks have been high but the economy still sucks.

[Old Moparz]

What really got me was, the estimator emailed me later and said that the boss could come out by himself on the weekend to do the trees for only 20 bucks more than the two year old price.  I declined, as I had a sour taste in my mouth at that point anyway. 

Same thing happened to me with quotes for my roof a few years ago. They all ranged between $8000 & $10,500 & after I got the 4th & final quote, I decided I was going to do it myself. (materials cost me $3000) The one company that quoted the $10,500 also happened to be the most "aggressive" with call backs to see if I decided who would do it, or if I had questions. I told the salesman flat out that he was the highest & that there was no way I could consider them. The owner called me back & asked to come out to have a look & revise the quote, so I agreed. He dropped it to $8500.

I understand the need to cover overhead & be competitive, but to be able to knock off $2000 shows me they are either greedy or incompetent. In either case I didn't want them on my roof.

[Todd Wilson]

             
 


But we need to get used to higher-priced energy.  This change is here to stay.  The lion's share of the increase is caused by geological limitations.  Nothing that Washington (or the Pentagon) can do will put things back the way they were 20 years ago.    

I can maybe agree with your comment as far as gasoline goes but we could do some things here in the states to keep electric an natty gas low. We've got all the resources here for that.


Todd

[Old Moparz]

             
 


But we need to get used to higher-priced energy.  This change is here to stay.  The lion's share of the increase is caused by geological limitations.  Nothing that Washington (or the Pentagon) can do will put things back the way they were 20 years ago.    

I can maybe agree with your comment as far as gasoline goes but we could do some things here in the states to keep electric an natty gas low. We've got all the resources here for that.


Todd

The resources may be here but you & I will never see it. The reason is, & just like with anything else, it is sold to the highest bidder. That means it goes overseas.

[Cooter]

Maybe so but I don't remember Bush shoving a healthcare mandate down every business owners throat nor do I recall a personal war on coal and coal fired power plants. Fact is the economy will NOT get better as long as the current administration is in power because nobody will spend any money as long as this guy is slithering in the direction he's going. The proof to that (as I see it) is that stocks have been high but the economy still sucks.

As long as the SPENDING public is scared to spend, we will never recover. Do any reallize that if we were taxed 100%, we couldn't pay off the national debt at the rate it is climbing?

[Mike DC]

Maybe so but I don't remember Bush shoving a healthcare mandate down every business owners throat nor do I recall a personal war on coal and coal fired power plants. Fact is the economy will NOT get better as long as the current administration is in power because nobody will spend any money as long as this guy is slithering in the direction he's going. The proof to that (as I see it) is that stocks have been high but the economy still sucks.

Let's not get into which of those presidents did more damage with his "personal war".  It's no laughing matter.

[Tilar]

Maybe so but I don't remember Bush shoving a healthcare mandate down every business owners throat nor do I recall a personal war on coal and coal fired power plants. Fact is the economy will NOT get better as long as the current administration is in power because nobody will spend any money as long as this guy is slithering in the direction he's going. The proof to that (as I see it) is that stocks have been high but the economy still sucks.

Let's not get into which of those presidents did more damage with his "personal war".  It's no laughing matter.

But since you did get into it...

Here, let me finish that for you with just a few facts added since some people tend to forget:   "Let's not get into which of those presidents did more damage with his "personal war"...  .... which the House approved with a Republican majority 296-133 (2.2-1 ratio) and Senate approved with a democrat majority 77-23 (over a 3.3-1 ratio) to authorize President Bush to attack Iraq if Saddam Hussein refuses to give up weapons of mass destruction as required by U.N. resolutions.

[Mike DC]

     
You can have that last world, now let's leave that subject alone.  

[Tilar]

Fair enough. 

[Paul G]

Why are fuel prices so high? Because that guy in office wants the prices high so he can make all his buddy's rich........ Oh wait, that was the other guy.....  so why is gas still $3.70/gal?

[Mike DC]

Why are fuel prices so high? Because that guy in office wants the prices high so he can make all his buddy's rich........ Oh wait, that was the other guy.....  icon_smile_big so why is gas still $3.70/gal?

Because the supply of oil on the planet is finite, no matter who is in office.

And $3.70 isn't worth as much as it used to be.

[Tilar]

It's so high because the value of the dollar is in the crapper and the price of oil is based off the American dollar.

[Paul G]

I have to say that I am just sick of all the lying and thieving that goes on with the leaders of our country. Before I started to pay attention to what actually goes on with our leaders, like most people in our country I only knew what was reported on the radio and TV. What has become a real shame is how the media has changed from an unbiased reporting service to a biased one sided view, leading people who don't know other wise to believe the news as the media wants it to be believed.   

[Old Moparz]

I have to say that I am just sick of all the lying and thieving that goes on with the leaders of our country. Before I started to pay attention to what actually goes on with our leaders, like most people in our country I only knew what was reported on the radio and TV. What has become a real shame is how the media has changed from an unbiased reporting service to a biased one sided view, leading people who don't know other wise to believe the news as the media wants it to be believed.   

This is probably one of, if not the biggest, reason for a lot of the problems & arguing people do over political & current event topics. I wish there were more independent news sources not influenced by a profit margin or a corporate agenda. There is nothing wrong with people forming an opinion, or taking the opposite stance, but PLEASE have all the info before you do.

There is a TV station, "FSTV" (Free Speech TV) on my Dish Network satellite service that I watch all the time. It's commercial free & not influenced by profit. I could cut my telephone/internet/TV monthly fees in half by using Verizon FIOS or going to one of the cable offerings but NONE OF THEM carry FSTV & to me it's much more important than saving a few bucks & being left in the dark.

NPR radio is also a good source. I stream it online in my office through a local carrier, WAMC. http://www.wamc.org/

[sunfire69]

..you have hit the nail on the head.!!!!!!....the media has it's own agenda....and the best interest of America is NOT it...people simply believe what ever is on TV....they don't think...for example oil is under $100 a barrel...the last time it was this low gas was just over $2 a gallon.....why is it still almost $4......the american people are being tested....to see how blindly they will follow/believe what is reported no matter how far fetched it is....or untrue, I for one am worried about what's to come....I wish I was more prepared....
Old Moparz.....your avatar is WAY to real.....

[Old Moparz]

..you have hit the nail on the head.!!!!!!....the media has it's own agenda....and the best interest of America is NOT it...people simply believe what ever is on TV....they don't think...for example oil is under $100 a barrel...the last time it was this low gas was just over $2 a gallon.....why is it still almost $4......the american people are being tested....to see how blindly they will follow/believe what is reported no matter how far fetched it is....or untrue, I for one am worried about what's to come....I wish I was more prepared....
Old Moparz.....your avatar is WAY to real.....

It's basic economics & simple to grasp that a company needs to make a profit to survive. The problem is when there is a conflict of interest, like when a large corporation is broadcasting news. They select the stories that won't shoot themselves in the foot by hurting their advertising income. They also have the problem of being owned by a larger corporation that has their own agenda & uses it for own needs. Omission of an important news story is just as bad as lying about one. My own rule for judging & trusting a news story is to ask myself, what is the source & what do they stand to gain or lose by telling this story?

Oil prices? Years ago it was pretty easy to blame the weather, a natural disaster, or a major accident like the Exxon Valdez, for a sudden jump in price & people simply believed it & bent over. Oil is traded on Wall St & prices are speculated, so we're screwed.

True, I do believe people are being tested & are closer to the point of saying no. It'll be interesting to see what becomes of the financial crisis going on in Cypress right now.......

https://www.freespeech.org/video/thom-hartmann-news-march-18-2013

When you think European financial crisis, you think Greece, or Spain, or Italy. But economic trouble in the small island nation of Cypress is causing a serious panic throughout Europe. Because of Cypress banks' exposure to the financial troubles in neighboring Greece, the island nation's banks need a bailout. In exchange for the $13 billion dollar bailout, representatives from the European Central Bank and IMF, along with finance ministers from European countries, have proposed a radical plan to impose a one-time tax on bank depositors. The plan calls for a 6.75% tax on all bank deposits up to 100,000 euros, and a 9.9% tax on deposits over that amount. As residents learned of the proposal, people rushed to banks and ATMs to withdraw their savings to avoid the tax. The policy is causing panic in Cypress, and that government has halted electronic bank transfers through Tuesday, in an effort to prevent a run on banks throughout that nation. Residents in other European nations are watching closely to see if similar plans are proposed for their countries. If leaders are not careful, this policy could bring down the banking system in Cypress, and possibly throughout all of Europe. Let's hope they make the right decisions, and stop this financial disaster before it's too late. Stay tuned.

[PocketThunder]

You can have that last world, now let's leave that subject alone.  

Wait, What? 

Why are fuel prices so high? Because that guy in office wants the prices high so he can make all his buddy's rich........ Oh wait, that was the other guy.....  icon_smile_big so why is gas still $3.70/gal?

Because the supply of oil on the planet is finite, no matter who is in office.
And $3.70 isn't worth as much as it used to be.

Its not worth as much as it used to be because the feds are printing dollars as fast as they can to monetize the debt that they rack up every year to get their "friends" elected.   

[mauve66]

Oil prices? Years ago it was pretty easy to blame the weather, a natural disaster, or a major accident like the Exxon Valdez, for a sudden jump in price & people simply believed it & bent over. Oil is traded on Wall St & prices are speculated, so we're screwed.

thats exactly it, if some schmoe on wall street can get someone else to pay extra for it 6-9 months out they will sell it, then that price for that time period will go up to cover the cost, has absolutely nothing to do with natural disasters

[Mike DC]

  
The price of oil is set purely by the forces of free-market Capitalism.  There are numerous different oil producers competing with each other selling oil all over the globe.  We get it as cheaply as they can sell it in the big picture.  The speculators cannot seriously raise LONG TERM AVERAGE prices, only supply & demand can do that.   

---------------------------


Would everyone prefer the US govt stepped in and started controlling oil prices?  

HA!  AS IF!