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This can’t be a real, thought out, response. I’m living in Florida. I will agree with you that rent-seeking and increasingly abusive landlords are a huge proble

This can’t be a real, thought out, response. I’m living in Florida. I will agree with you that rent-seeking and increasingly abusive landlords are a huge problem here. However, the largest drivers of pricing out retirees in my anecdotal observations is uncontrolled healthcare, insurance, and food costs. The electric companies have also increased their rates and been allowed to add insane flat infrastructure recovery costs for storm damages. In the last two years the following has happened: The same box of cereal increased from ~$3.75 to ~$6.59 and gone from 19oz to 17oz. The electric company got an 11% rate increase approved and an additional ~$20 storm surcharge added. (The surcharge is in addition to the existing ~$8 storm protection fee which was supposed to cover storm damages and infra improvement). Vehicle insurance rates increased by ~20%. Homeowners insurance increased by ~40%. Health insurance and prescriptions have increased by insane, unquantifiable amounts. (Rates didn’t just increase, but benefits on plans were changed so significantly as to completely invalidate any previous cost-benefit-analysis. Coverage is no longer predictable due to ridiculously arbitrary rejections of coverage. A single asthma prescription increased from ~$20 to nearly ~$150 a month.) What you see a problem of government regulation I see as a problem of rampant greed and market manipulation to benefit a single class of individual. I watched the market respond to a crisis by increasing customer costs and turning the last couple years into their most profitable ever. I agree with you however that housing has been essentially weaponized, and I believe we’re quickly entering the age of the landlord. It’s preposterous that any person can be homeless while another person owns 50+ properties and provides little, to zero, value to society. It’s preposterous that we’re allowing collusion and price fixing in the rental market via 3rd party property management companies. It’s preposterous that rent amounts for a modest home or apartment require incomes and credit scores that only ~5-10% of the population has.

gcanyon 3y ago
> The same box of cereal increased from ~$3.75 to ~$6.59 and gone from 19oz to 17oz. Your claim is that cereal has experienced 96% inflation? Over what time frame?
- voidwtf 3y ago
  Since the beginning of 2020, yes. Even the delayed statistics appear to support my anecdotal evidence. However, thanks to Publix sending receipts to my email account I can provide a more concrete example. Kellogg’s Fruit Loops “Family Size” 01/16/2020 21oz $4.79 ~$0.23/oz Today 18.4oz $8.59 ~$0.47/oz So yea, over a 100% increase…
  - ac29 3y ago
    Not sure if you are cherry picking that example, but I looked up that cereal in my local grocery store in a VHCOL area and it is $6.99/23oz ($0.30/oz).
    - 88913527 3y ago
      You're both correct. Individual SKUs varying by $1-2 between two different metros isn't surprising or unrealistic. Stores also adjust pricing weekly, and items on offer tend to rotate as well, so comparing point-in-time prices could be volatile. None of this means the inflation didn't occur, just that one specific example may not be telling the full picture.
    - kevinsync 3y ago
      In my area, the Malt-O-Meal knockoff version ("Tootie Fruities") is $5.99/30oz ($0.20/oz). I point this out because it always seems weird to me that discussing housing / utilities / healthcare / education costs somehow get boiled down to grocery store pricing disparities, when grocery stores allow you to comparison shop (and real estate / electricity / oil / etc don't).
      - voidwtf 3y ago
        Because this method of judging inflation by using “equivalent” substitutes completely ignores the change in quality of life. Real inflation is what happens when my behavior doesn’t change at all, but my costs increase. If I keep making adjustments to my behaviors then I’m just trying to counteract inflation, it doesn’t mean inflation isn’t happening.
ChatGTP 3y ago
Isn't this the entire point of capitalism and the privatization of critical services and infrastructure ? All companies exist to make money, that is absolutely all there is to it. So they're making more money by jacking up prices as far as they can to make...more money. In the US, this will continue until it can't anymore...it will happen things like food, electricity, healthcare, education, infrastructure. The only thing that could stop is might be government intervention, but the politicians are bought too now, so maybe direct civil disobedience would be the only other thing that might bring on a change.
- voidwtf 3y ago
  I think all economic and political systems have pros and cons. They all are subject to corruption and greed as well. The problem isn’t capitalism alone, but corruption and greed as well. We’ve reached the point where those at the top are blaming everything but their own greed for the problems the rest of the world is dealing with. Scurvy is going to make a comeback and the rich are going to blame it on laziness and a lack of hard work. History repeats itself.
CWuestefeld 3y ago
Not disagreeing with your observations, but I'd like to add property taxes, and most specifically, the portion used to support public schools, to your list. Excluding the past year, this is where I've seen the greatest increases in my expenses. And since it's government creating most of this, it's hard to imagine that there's any relief to be found by looking towards government for a solution.
- giantrobot 3y ago
  Those damn public schools. Schools ought to be private so only the wealthy can afford them. That way the lessers know their place and can get their kids cleaning toilets and digging ditches sooner!
  - Zpalmtree 3y ago
    Are we not allowed to question any increase to taxation when its related to education?
    - gottorf 3y ago
      Especially when the US public education system spends more per pupil than almost every other country on the planet[0], with appalling results. In fact, as spending increased 30% over the past decade, student achievements flatlined, then fell precipitously after Covid[1]. [0]: https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statistics https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statisti... [1]: https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=38 https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=38
      - deleted 3y ago
        [deleted]
- voidwtf 3y ago
  I think you may have missed that Florida passed a school choice act, and that tons of funds are now flowing into private religious schools. A ridiculous waste of money, especially considering a majority of said schools raised their tuition rates to just absorb the new funding. DeSantis policies at work.

gcanyon 3y ago

> The same box of cereal increased from ~$3.75 to ~$6.59 and gone from 19oz to 17oz. Your claim is that cereal has experienced 96% inflation? Over what time frame?

voidwtf 3y ago
Since the beginning of 2020, yes. Even the delayed statistics appear to support my anecdotal evidence. However, thanks to Publix sending receipts to my email account I can provide a more concrete example. Kellogg’s Fruit Loops “Family Size” 01/16/2020 21oz $4.79 ~$0.23/oz Today 18.4oz $8.59 ~$0.47/oz So yea, over a 100% increase…
- ac29 3y ago
  Not sure if you are cherry picking that example, but I looked up that cereal in my local grocery store in a VHCOL area and it is $6.99/23oz ($0.30/oz).
  - 88913527 3y ago
    You're both correct. Individual SKUs varying by $1-2 between two different metros isn't surprising or unrealistic. Stores also adjust pricing weekly, and items on offer tend to rotate as well, so comparing point-in-time prices could be volatile. None of this means the inflation didn't occur, just that one specific example may not be telling the full picture.
  - kevinsync 3y ago
    In my area, the Malt-O-Meal knockoff version ("Tootie Fruities") is $5.99/30oz ($0.20/oz). I point this out because it always seems weird to me that discussing housing / utilities / healthcare / education costs somehow get boiled down to grocery store pricing disparities, when grocery stores allow you to comparison shop (and real estate / electricity / oil / etc don't).
    - voidwtf 3y ago
      Because this method of judging inflation by using “equivalent” substitutes completely ignores the change in quality of life. Real inflation is what happens when my behavior doesn’t change at all, but my costs increase. If I keep making adjustments to my behaviors then I’m just trying to counteract inflation, it doesn’t mean inflation isn’t happening.

ChatGTP 3y ago

Isn't this the entire point of capitalism and the privatization of critical services and infrastructure ? All companies exist to make money, that is absolutely all there is to it. So they're making more money by jacking up prices as far as they can to make...more money. In the US, this will continue until it can't anymore...it will happen things like food, electricity, healthcare, education, infrastructure. The only thing that could stop is might be government intervention, but the politicians are bought too now, so maybe direct civil disobedience would be the only other thing that might bring on a change.

voidwtf 3y ago
I think all economic and political systems have pros and cons. They all are subject to corruption and greed as well. The problem isn’t capitalism alone, but corruption and greed as well. We’ve reached the point where those at the top are blaming everything but their own greed for the problems the rest of the world is dealing with. Scurvy is going to make a comeback and the rich are going to blame it on laziness and a lack of hard work. History repeats itself.

CWuestefeld 3y ago

Not disagreeing with your observations, but I'd like to add property taxes, and most specifically, the portion used to support public schools, to your list. Excluding the past year, this is where I've seen the greatest increases in my expenses. And since it's government creating most of this, it's hard to imagine that there's any relief to be found by looking towards government for a solution.

giantrobot 3y ago
Those damn public schools. Schools ought to be private so only the wealthy can afford them. That way the lessers know their place and can get their kids cleaning toilets and digging ditches sooner!
- Zpalmtree 3y ago
  Are we not allowed to question any increase to taxation when its related to education?
  - gottorf 3y ago
    Especially when the US public education system spends more per pupil than almost every other country on the planet[0], with appalling results. In fact, as spending increased 30% over the past decade, student achievements flatlined, then fell precipitously after Covid[1]. [0]: https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statistics https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statisti... [1]: https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=38 https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=38
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
voidwtf 3y ago
I think you may have missed that Florida passed a school choice act, and that tons of funds are now flowing into private religious schools. A ridiculous waste of money, especially considering a majority of said schools raised their tuition rates to just absorb the new funding. DeSantis policies at work.