Sometimes, they disguise the price increase by changing packaging to provide less product for the same price. They think we won’t notice, but we do. But if we need the product, we have no choice.
BTW, re diapers, one way to avoid the duopoly is to use cloth diapers and a diaper service. Support the local business, and keep “disposable” diapers out of the landfill.
Yes! They've been doing this with food for decades. You can't get a 1/2 or 1 lb. can of anything any more, or a 1 lb frozen bag of veggies, they're all 7oz, 14 oz, 28oz... If you have an old recipe that calls for 8 oz or 12 oz of something, you often have to buy two things. Even worse, put a tiny little big inside a cardboard package twice the necessary size. I made that mistake recently, forgetting about this type of dishonesty, so I didn't read the label and paid way too much for way too few crackers.
Probably unsurprisingly, I've seen news channels reporting that one of the causes of inflation is that these same corporations have had to raise wages and add more benefits just to hire enough people back. Same as Walgreens blaming "shoplifting" for closing stores in San Francisco (news flash, the stores they closed weren't the ones with the worst shoplifting) when it's in fact because they pulled a Starbucks and opened too many too close together + "brick and mortar meltdown", same as BP's spin about global warming being about individual consumption -- Never the rich people's fault, never corporate greed's fault -- it's poor people's fault!
If only Biden would use this information about corporate price gouging to combat the incessant high dudgeon of inflation news. How unpatriotic of corporate companies to take advantage of consumers and the country at large. Profit increases disguised as “woe-is-me” minor cost increases are pathetic.
Hmmm. Amazing! All my stock market investments are currently in my IRAs. Even though I am not "wealthy," the increases in my portfolio are astonishing. This is all something to ponder and I will be sharing it with others who will want to know these truths. Wow.
The citizen battles the corporate 1%. They battle the wealthy 1%. They battle the stockholders and investors. Used to be a political party took up for the citizen on local. state and federal levels. Too many hands in all political pockets now. You vote your one vote and the 1% benefits because: We the People can't line the pockets of those elected to represent us.
Just saw a story on AP how Food Banks can't keep up with needy and the increase of help during this time of rising prices.
I don't comment here much any more. It's the same problem in every arena. 1 % benefitting and the rest of us taking it on the chin.
I wish more people can read your article. You’re pointing out the obvious but many people aren’t grasping. Not only are individuals gaining wealth during this crisis, corporations are raising prices and profit margins are also increasing. That tells us they are taking advantage of us. They’re laying the burden where it always goes in this country…middle class. It puts people in an endless loop like running in a hamster wheel just to cover needs. Capitalism has run amok and we won’t fix it if republicans maintain any control.
At the same time, Dems/Biden need to get the deadly coup group off the street and in very long-term prison sentences, the BBB has to be shoved through, expand the Supreme Court, do everything it takes and stop asking Dems to settle. We need to see some fist pounding and results that matter!
Congress doesn't seem to care about fair market competition and anti-trust or it would have addressed the vertical market takeover issue and gone after massive conglomerates like Con-Agra, Luxxotica, Disney, Comcast, TimeWarner, News Corporation, AT&T (again!) etc. instead of laser-focusing on companies like Amazon.
Reagan dismantled anti-trust. Republicans only care about power at any cost. The alteration of anti-trust policy was seen as a way to go big globally. Most of the above mentioned companies control our airwaves and are in the hands of right wingers. I would say Amazon is about the scariest in terms of it’s extreme overreach into every market. But right wing media is a danger to society.
I think you made some good points, and also there have been several Democratic-controlled Congresses and Democratic Presidents since then, who supposedly care about these things. Reagan hasn't been President for a long time, so I still lay the blame squarely on our governing bodies, today. They've had plenty of time to correct these problems and they have failed, IMO because big corporations and rich people get more votes (i.e. lobbying $$ as well as what you note, in media control) than actual voters do. Amazon isn't the scariest in my view; ConAgra is scarier to me, since they are nothing but a for-profit food conglomerate and have dismantled food safety processes in factories they take over. I have some inside info about that because of what my father did for a living (food safety). Disney may not seem "scary" but they have a frightening amount of control over American culture and media for all ages. No one company should have that kind of control over what we eat or our entertainment and news, even if they are for now not using it for ill -- seemingly. When a company gets that large how do you ever know for sure? Amazon's website at least lets many different vendors sell things, and their infrastructure platform, AWS doesn't have a vested interest in any particular customer, or type of customer, using it. Their market dominance has also been overstated according to what I've been reading.
Oh the food giants… Your dad must know more than he cares to know about that industry. And these food conglomerates are real bullies. Remember when the beef industry took Oprah to court? Monters, for sure.
The politicians are too busy campaigning on day one in office rather than focusing on what must be done. So much needs to change. Our electoral college allows kings and queens to override the vote of the people.
The Sinclair Bros (very close ties to Trump)own 294 TV stations! Murdock with wide-reaching Fox, NBC-Comcast CNN-AT&T and more…they’re very dangerously controlling the airwaves.
Hmm but todays Intercept has a great article about how inflation lowers the value of our (middle class) debt, and is really good for us. (Also helpfully points out that prices didn’t rise 6.5% in a single month, as misleadingly reported in NYT.) So, now I’m confused, but also glad I read >one source on any given day.
Grimly poetic how Procter & Gamble, the company that makes Pampers diapers, is full of sh*t.
Sometimes, they disguise the price increase by changing packaging to provide less product for the same price. They think we won’t notice, but we do. But if we need the product, we have no choice.
BTW, re diapers, one way to avoid the duopoly is to use cloth diapers and a diaper service. Support the local business, and keep “disposable” diapers out of the landfill.
Yes! They've been doing this with food for decades. You can't get a 1/2 or 1 lb. can of anything any more, or a 1 lb frozen bag of veggies, they're all 7oz, 14 oz, 28oz... If you have an old recipe that calls for 8 oz or 12 oz of something, you often have to buy two things. Even worse, put a tiny little big inside a cardboard package twice the necessary size. I made that mistake recently, forgetting about this type of dishonesty, so I didn't read the label and paid way too much for way too few crackers.
So, in other words, everyone wins.............except for those commoners like us who actually have to buy these products.
Probably unsurprisingly, I've seen news channels reporting that one of the causes of inflation is that these same corporations have had to raise wages and add more benefits just to hire enough people back. Same as Walgreens blaming "shoplifting" for closing stores in San Francisco (news flash, the stores they closed weren't the ones with the worst shoplifting) when it's in fact because they pulled a Starbucks and opened too many too close together + "brick and mortar meltdown", same as BP's spin about global warming being about individual consumption -- Never the rich people's fault, never corporate greed's fault -- it's poor people's fault!
I wonder if Katie Porter knows about this.
Katie Porter is a dynamo. I love her and wish more Democrats would learn from her. (As well as news reporters)
If only Biden would use this information about corporate price gouging to combat the incessant high dudgeon of inflation news. How unpatriotic of corporate companies to take advantage of consumers and the country at large. Profit increases disguised as “woe-is-me” minor cost increases are pathetic.
Perhaps and Oval Office address is required to combat inflation?
Sickening to think of grocery moguls playing dice with the very sustenance of their customers.
Hmmm. Amazing! All my stock market investments are currently in my IRAs. Even though I am not "wealthy," the increases in my portfolio are astonishing. This is all something to ponder and I will be sharing it with others who will want to know these truths. Wow.
The citizen battles the corporate 1%. They battle the wealthy 1%. They battle the stockholders and investors. Used to be a political party took up for the citizen on local. state and federal levels. Too many hands in all political pockets now. You vote your one vote and the 1% benefits because: We the People can't line the pockets of those elected to represent us.
Just saw a story on AP how Food Banks can't keep up with needy and the increase of help during this time of rising prices.
I don't comment here much any more. It's the same problem in every arena. 1 % benefitting and the rest of us taking it on the chin.
I wish more people can read your article. You’re pointing out the obvious but many people aren’t grasping. Not only are individuals gaining wealth during this crisis, corporations are raising prices and profit margins are also increasing. That tells us they are taking advantage of us. They’re laying the burden where it always goes in this country…middle class. It puts people in an endless loop like running in a hamster wheel just to cover needs. Capitalism has run amok and we won’t fix it if republicans maintain any control.
At the same time, Dems/Biden need to get the deadly coup group off the street and in very long-term prison sentences, the BBB has to be shoved through, expand the Supreme Court, do everything it takes and stop asking Dems to settle. We need to see some fist pounding and results that matter!
I agree with your assessment in it's entirety.
Where's Teddy Roosevelt when you need him?
Do you mean Franklin D Roosevelt? He’s the one who confronted the robber barons of those time and put the New Deal in place. Teddy is his cousin.
No, I mean Teddy. He was known as "The Trust Buster" and went after monopolies.
Oh, ok. He also set aside significant land for national parks. But he was definitely conservative. But in todays standard that would be center left! 😀
Would love to see more monopolistic businesses addressed. Look what we have now!
Congress doesn't seem to care about fair market competition and anti-trust or it would have addressed the vertical market takeover issue and gone after massive conglomerates like Con-Agra, Luxxotica, Disney, Comcast, TimeWarner, News Corporation, AT&T (again!) etc. instead of laser-focusing on companies like Amazon.
Reagan dismantled anti-trust. Republicans only care about power at any cost. The alteration of anti-trust policy was seen as a way to go big globally. Most of the above mentioned companies control our airwaves and are in the hands of right wingers. I would say Amazon is about the scariest in terms of it’s extreme overreach into every market. But right wing media is a danger to society.
I think you made some good points, and also there have been several Democratic-controlled Congresses and Democratic Presidents since then, who supposedly care about these things. Reagan hasn't been President for a long time, so I still lay the blame squarely on our governing bodies, today. They've had plenty of time to correct these problems and they have failed, IMO because big corporations and rich people get more votes (i.e. lobbying $$ as well as what you note, in media control) than actual voters do. Amazon isn't the scariest in my view; ConAgra is scarier to me, since they are nothing but a for-profit food conglomerate and have dismantled food safety processes in factories they take over. I have some inside info about that because of what my father did for a living (food safety). Disney may not seem "scary" but they have a frightening amount of control over American culture and media for all ages. No one company should have that kind of control over what we eat or our entertainment and news, even if they are for now not using it for ill -- seemingly. When a company gets that large how do you ever know for sure? Amazon's website at least lets many different vendors sell things, and their infrastructure platform, AWS doesn't have a vested interest in any particular customer, or type of customer, using it. Their market dominance has also been overstated according to what I've been reading.
Oh the food giants… Your dad must know more than he cares to know about that industry. And these food conglomerates are real bullies. Remember when the beef industry took Oprah to court? Monters, for sure.
The politicians are too busy campaigning on day one in office rather than focusing on what must be done. So much needs to change. Our electoral college allows kings and queens to override the vote of the people.
The Sinclair Bros (very close ties to Trump)own 294 TV stations! Murdock with wide-reaching Fox, NBC-Comcast CNN-AT&T and more…they’re very dangerously controlling the airwaves.
Luxxotica? Never heard that name. I’ll have to go Google it, err, I mean Bing it
Hmm but todays Intercept has a great article about how inflation lowers the value of our (middle class) debt, and is really good for us. (Also helpfully points out that prices didn’t rise 6.5% in a single month, as misleadingly reported in NYT.) So, now I’m confused, but also glad I read >one source on any given day.