Life is good, just not as cheap as it was,yesterday.

I must be getting old. I will not argue with that point.
For the last few weeks , I have , occasionally been trying to 'point a finger'
at exactly what is going 'wrong' in america. The thoughts of 'big' corporations
has been haunting me. Big business has taken over the news media.
Hey. They pay for the advertising. If they don't like your news/product.
No advertising money. No money, no news show. or so my theory goes.
You are saying to yourself,"I have known that for years.way to go , bright-eyes."
But what i have been noticing lately is that consumer prices are rising
at a steep upward surge. i want to give some specific examples.
Life is the USA, today. April 17,2009. But first, I need to reminisce of old days:
(A)
Remember a 12 ounce can of Coca-Cola, for 50 cents ? Yes, I do.
These days, instead you pay $1 plus tax for a 20 ounce bottle.
(B
)How about macaroni n cheese, 6 boxes for a dollar ? Generic brands,yes.
I'll have to check,but my local store now charges $1.50 for 1 box of Kraft mac n cheese.
Over the winter, I was happy to pay $3 for a four pack of Kraft M n C.
Because, well, that is a months supply.No more than I eat the stuff.

(C)
I noticed the new taxes on cigarettes the other day.
It seems like a few years ago, you could buy generic cigs for $1 a pack.
I was kind of shocked, that a carton NOW goes for $50 . Where have I been ?
Did the prices rise slowly, or all at once ? Three years ago, my buddy in Washington
state told me 'horror stories' about the prices there: $5 a pack for cigs, and $3 a beer.
(D)
And getting back to 'junk' food, and my personal favorite, Doritos .
I paid $3.99 for a bag of chips. Seems like last year, they were $3 . I would never buy them
for over $3, but now we do not have a choice. If you want them.
(E)
One of my favorite meals is Tyson Buffalo Chicken breast strips.
Just last year, we paid $9 for a 34 ounce bag. Now, we pay $10 for a 28 ounce bag.
===
So my thinking is, all these 'national' companies - the ones who bought out their competitors
with billions of dollars, they are the ones who are having the rough times in 2009.
But just as importantly, these corporations are the reasons 'people' are seeing rough times.
So, forget(A) Cokes, and you can still buy a generic 2 liter bottle of Cola for under $1.
Walmart doesn't price groceries online,but i'm guessing 3 (B)mac n cheese for a dollar is a good bargain.
But Walmart, aren't they one of those corporations ? Not really. They didn't buy up the K-Marts and Sears.
They just plain ran them out of business.At least in this area,where shopping malls are scarce.
I see online, where you can still buy a generic carton of (C) cigs for $10 .
And(D) chips, you can still find good deals on generic brands and store brands.
Then, we have the other side of the National companies,the ones who are not (yet) raising prices.
But most of these are service industries, such as AT&T telephone.
They will need to stay competetive with their pricing, or they will lose customers.
So anyway, when you hear reports of how good it is, or how bad it is, you can look back here,
and see where it was in April 2009. Take care.