Inflation Watch:

Today I’m launching a new blog column, titled Inflation Watch. It is intended to expose the myth that “there’s no inflation” at present here in the United States and in other First World countries. I’m not sure if this column will become a permanent fixture at SurvivalBlog, but given the recent massive government overspending and monetization, I suspect that I’ll have plenty of material for Inflation Watch.. If you have any present-day personal accounts, or if you spot any news items that show significant inflation, then please e-mail the links to me. These can include details on the shrinking sizes of food and other consumer -packaged goods. Thanks! Here are my initial offerings.

A recent stop at a rural fruit stand gave me some sticker shock. The sign proclaimed: “Cherries $1.00”, but once under the tent, I learned that the standard-size baskets were priced at $6, the quarter-baskets were $2, and it was their micro baskets that held perhaps 8 to 10 cherries that were $1. Needless to say, I drove on.

Last weekend my family visited a National Park. A sign announced that annual passes are now $80. But when I bought my current pass (last December), it cost $50.

On a recent consulting trip to a more populous state, I heard a gas station owner brag that his price for unleaded gas was “…only $3.13 a gallon.”

My son mentioned that half-gallon ice cream cartons have been almost universally replaced with 1.75-quart and now even 1.5-quart cartons. So does this mean that ice cream is now 25% less fattening?