Silver is 18.67 an OZ.Wish I could buy a truck load full of it.That’s the only way I know to at least keep up with inflation.
ASIG
September 13, 2014 8:16 pm
In 1959 there was a small burger joint across the street from the high school that I went to. They had a deluxe burger that was to die for. One of the best burgers I’ve ever had.
The Deluxe Burger and a small bag of potato chips and a Coke were 50 cents.
Econman
September 14, 2014 12:32 pm
Wait until hyperinflation.
Maybe McDonald’s will introduce the $10 menu.
Reverend Draco
September 14, 2014 1:14 pm
Speaking of McDonald’s. . .
The average price of a Big Mac is approximately 1/2 hour of minimum wage. . .
I wonder how the people whining about raising the MW are going to like their $7.50 Big Macs, if the $15 MW passes?
Llpoh
September 14, 2014 1:33 pm
For fuck sake, the average wage was $400 in 1900. Today it is $50k or whatever.
So using the soup example, you could now buy 70 cans of soup for the same relative salary. Or in that instance, a person is seven times better off. Using the meat example of 1913, people are about 4 times better off now. Etc etc etc.
If wages had remained constant, this would have some meaning. But it is just bullshit as presented.
The problem today is that the interests rates are effectively zero, while inflation is up markedly, and wages are down.
People are worse off than the were a year ago, for sure.
But nonetheless, the fact is that Americans squandered the opportunity they had when unskilled and poorly skilled workers were able to (artificially) command middle class wages.
Those days are now gone. The US standard of living will gradually and interminably fall towards the world mean. Too bad so sad. Just another $20k or so per year average income drop to go. Nothing will stop it.
But crap like the info above is just that – crap. It totally ignores what wages were at different points in time.
It sucks to be poor – but fact is, the vast majority of the world’s population is poor, and will remain so. But there are still a couple hundred million Americans that will keep eeking steadily towards those ranks, in addition to those already there.
Man, folks just do not get it. The good old days are gone. If you are not in the top ten percent re skills/education/ability, you are fucked.
Billy's wife
September 14, 2014 2:47 pm
I used to blow Llpoh for a dollar. But now I charge five dollars. He can afford it, plus it’s a very small job.
bb
September 14, 2014 3:25 pm
Loopy ,you rich fuckers are all the same .No shame , no guilt , no crumbs for us poor folks.I get it ,I just don’t like it…….
Llpoh
September 14, 2014 3:46 pm
I love the thumbs down. It just proves to me that folks are still deluded. “If only banks, corps, politicians, etc. had acted differently then things would be different”. Things would be delayed, but not different in the end. The last 70 years has been an aberration, and that aberration is being corrected. Slowly at first, then it will be quickly corrected.
As my pappy used to say, shit in one hand and hope in the other – see which one fills up first.
The US has lived well beyond its means for sixty years. Folks have come to believe they are entitled to the middle class lifestyle. They do not understand the need to earn it.
Americans by and large think they are harder working, smarter, more skilled than a couple billion Asians, and that belief will be the ruin of them.
Life has always been ruthlessly hard for most humans. Reversion to the norm is going to be a bitch.
But keep hoping. I am sure that will work out fine.
Llpoh's wife
September 14, 2014 3:49 pm
You bitch, that was Llpoh’s doppel, my husband pays a lot more and he’s big Big big.
Llpoh
September 14, 2014 3:50 pm
bb – I have nothing to be ashamed of. I have passed many crumbs along, and still do so. Some crumbs are forced out of me at the barrel of a gun, and some fall owing to the work, skill and experience I have brought to bear over the years.
El Comandante
September 14, 2014 3:52 pm
Surprised my comment didn’t post last night, Steinbeck said junkers went for as low as $75 in the dustbowl years. That is equivalent to today’s price for junkers: $1300.
bb
September 14, 2014 9:16 pm
Lipoh , I just kidding about rich people. I am not envious of well to do people. You made good choices and worked hard.Good for you.
Jackson, passing along a comment from his aged father,
September 14, 2014 10:50 pm
When I was growing up in Dakota Territory in the mid 1880s I remember that my Dad paid $5 for a good suit and $2 for a pair of shoes. The costs of goods and food continued low until World War 1. Then everything began to skyrocket and prices have gone up ever since. My staple for all these years, Lewis’ Long-life Elixir was a dollar a bottle when I started taking it in 1892. It was spendy then and since but it’s been worth it. In 1934, when the company went out of business, I had to hire a chemist to recreate the tonic. Now every daily dose costs about what you’d pay for a Viagra pill but the results are better. Lewis’ keeps me ramrod straight and attentive when I need to be. Forget inflation I say. Just find some way to keep your heart beating, your bowels functioning, and Peter pointing to the stars and you’ll look forward to every day. So too will the women in your life. I’ll be 1__ in October, but because I’ve been savvy and have saved all these decades, I don’t mind paying more for cornflakes, chocolates, and c___ – (that’s cuddling for those of you kids who are always thinking of something else.)
Matt
September 15, 2014 1:01 am
Llpoh: Income distribution could be markedly different and more egalitarian. You never stated this, it was presumed for some reason, but assuming you are well off, you benefit from the income gap, and most likely support political perspectives that maintain the income divide. The 10% you’re talking about includes Doctors, Lawyers, CEO’s. Political and economic policies directly placed these professions in the top 10%. US Drs make considerably more than Drs in the rest of the world, because of the way the medical industry is structured. Lawyers compensation structures, same thing. Enough has been said about CEO’s.
Economic policy, aggressive cultivation of a consumer society, and political protection for corporate interests, and failure to socialize critical industries are to an extent to blame. Until this current correction, Americans in general were conditioned to a certain way of life. Infographic aside, foisting blame on people conditioned by their country to a certain way of life is ignorant and callous. And adding a disclaimer: “being poor sucks” doesn’t absolve you of those traits.
Fuck avg income, btw. Take a look at income distribution and median income.
Iska Waran
September 15, 2014 2:37 am
Doctors, (some) lawyers and (some) CEO’s command high incomes because they have skills others don’t have. If you want doctor pay, go to medical school. If you want the pay of a Lowes night shift shelf stocker, drop out of high school or get 2/3 of a BA in social work from some crappy college. Llpoh doesn’t have to be absolved of anything. He lives in the real world.
Gil
September 15, 2014 3:10 am
Why should a 1900 dollar bill have the same buying power as a 2000 dollar bill? Why should an hour of work in 1900 be equivalent to an hour of work in 2000? The living standard between 1900 and now has clearly risen for the average person on the street so it’s safe to say hard currencies are not needed for wealth creation.
Llpoh
September 15, 2014 6:26 am
Matt – you are a fucking imbecile. Egalitarian my fat ass. Why should a society be egalitarian? A society should offer equal opportunity, but beyond that, it is ever man and woman for him or herself, based on their individual merits, drive, skills, decision making.
You taint yourself as a socialist by wanting to socialize critical industries. Government has no business owning anything. They are not capable of running anything.
Govt needs to set equal laws, then get the fuck out of the way. They have no business aiding the rich and powerful, and they sure as hell have no business redistributing wealth.
And Your comments about Americans being conditioned to a way of life is correct. Your position as to who is to blame is suspect, however. You look to blame the shepherd, while I blame the sheep. Americans have had freedom, they have just allowed it to be sucked away owing to their stupidity.
Don’t you have a union rally or something to attend?
Llpoh
September 15, 2014 6:27 am
Thanks Iska.
Matt
September 16, 2014 2:39 pm
I’m an imbecile because my politics differ from yours?
OK.
If you think this society affords equal opportunity to all, then you’re blind.
Take a look at pay differentials of CEO’s and employees. Take a look at industry commentary on CEO pay scales, and the call for major MBA programs to reorient.
You’re an apologist for the top 10%. You offer no solution outside of calling everyone an idiot. And the sheep on this site blindly agree with you. Taint myself with socialism? When the tent collapses, your standard of living will have the most dramatic (negative) delta. What use are your ostensibly superior skills if no one is capable of paying the price you demand?
Call me what you want, this clearly is not my scene, but your opinions are not facts. Provide sources. I’m open minded, prove me wrong and I’ll concede. Until then, stfu.
Matt
September 16, 2014 2:45 pm
Iska, I come from a family of doctors. I’m intimately familiar with the issues in the medical care industry. Take a look at the rise of NP’s, the scarcity of GP’s, and the acknowledgment of the medical community that outside of certain specializations, the skill gap between nurses and Dr’s is not as wide as once thought. Do you understand how Big Law works? How inflated the cost of legal service is?
Understand the problems before you make uninformed generalizations.
Silver is 18.67 an OZ.Wish I could buy a truck load full of it.That’s the only way I know to at least keep up with inflation.
In 1959 there was a small burger joint across the street from the high school that I went to. They had a deluxe burger that was to die for. One of the best burgers I’ve ever had.
The Deluxe Burger and a small bag of potato chips and a Coke were 50 cents.
Wait until hyperinflation.
Maybe McDonald’s will introduce the $10 menu.
Speaking of McDonald’s. . .
The average price of a Big Mac is approximately 1/2 hour of minimum wage. . .
I wonder how the people whining about raising the MW are going to like their $7.50 Big Macs, if the $15 MW passes?
For fuck sake, the average wage was $400 in 1900. Today it is $50k or whatever.
So using the soup example, you could now buy 70 cans of soup for the same relative salary. Or in that instance, a person is seven times better off. Using the meat example of 1913, people are about 4 times better off now. Etc etc etc.
If wages had remained constant, this would have some meaning. But it is just bullshit as presented.
The problem today is that the interests rates are effectively zero, while inflation is up markedly, and wages are down.
People are worse off than the were a year ago, for sure.
But nonetheless, the fact is that Americans squandered the opportunity they had when unskilled and poorly skilled workers were able to (artificially) command middle class wages.
Those days are now gone. The US standard of living will gradually and interminably fall towards the world mean. Too bad so sad. Just another $20k or so per year average income drop to go. Nothing will stop it.
But crap like the info above is just that – crap. It totally ignores what wages were at different points in time.
It sucks to be poor – but fact is, the vast majority of the world’s population is poor, and will remain so. But there are still a couple hundred million Americans that will keep eeking steadily towards those ranks, in addition to those already there.
Man, folks just do not get it. The good old days are gone. If you are not in the top ten percent re skills/education/ability, you are fucked.
I used to blow Llpoh for a dollar. But now I charge five dollars. He can afford it, plus it’s a very small job.
Loopy ,you rich fuckers are all the same .No shame , no guilt , no crumbs for us poor folks.I get it ,I just don’t like it…….
I love the thumbs down. It just proves to me that folks are still deluded. “If only banks, corps, politicians, etc. had acted differently then things would be different”. Things would be delayed, but not different in the end. The last 70 years has been an aberration, and that aberration is being corrected. Slowly at first, then it will be quickly corrected.
As my pappy used to say, shit in one hand and hope in the other – see which one fills up first.
The US has lived well beyond its means for sixty years. Folks have come to believe they are entitled to the middle class lifestyle. They do not understand the need to earn it.
Americans by and large think they are harder working, smarter, more skilled than a couple billion Asians, and that belief will be the ruin of them.
Life has always been ruthlessly hard for most humans. Reversion to the norm is going to be a bitch.
But keep hoping. I am sure that will work out fine.
You bitch, that was Llpoh’s doppel, my husband pays a lot more and he’s big Big big.
bb – I have nothing to be ashamed of. I have passed many crumbs along, and still do so. Some crumbs are forced out of me at the barrel of a gun, and some fall owing to the work, skill and experience I have brought to bear over the years.
Surprised my comment didn’t post last night, Steinbeck said junkers went for as low as $75 in the dustbowl years. That is equivalent to today’s price for junkers: $1300.
Lipoh , I just kidding about rich people. I am not envious of well to do people. You made good choices and worked hard.Good for you.
When I was growing up in Dakota Territory in the mid 1880s I remember that my Dad paid $5 for a good suit and $2 for a pair of shoes. The costs of goods and food continued low until World War 1. Then everything began to skyrocket and prices have gone up ever since. My staple for all these years, Lewis’ Long-life Elixir was a dollar a bottle when I started taking it in 1892. It was spendy then and since but it’s been worth it. In 1934, when the company went out of business, I had to hire a chemist to recreate the tonic. Now every daily dose costs about what you’d pay for a Viagra pill but the results are better. Lewis’ keeps me ramrod straight and attentive when I need to be. Forget inflation I say. Just find some way to keep your heart beating, your bowels functioning, and Peter pointing to the stars and you’ll look forward to every day. So too will the women in your life. I’ll be 1__ in October, but because I’ve been savvy and have saved all these decades, I don’t mind paying more for cornflakes, chocolates, and c___ – (that’s cuddling for those of you kids who are always thinking of something else.)
Llpoh: Income distribution could be markedly different and more egalitarian. You never stated this, it was presumed for some reason, but assuming you are well off, you benefit from the income gap, and most likely support political perspectives that maintain the income divide. The 10% you’re talking about includes Doctors, Lawyers, CEO’s. Political and economic policies directly placed these professions in the top 10%. US Drs make considerably more than Drs in the rest of the world, because of the way the medical industry is structured. Lawyers compensation structures, same thing. Enough has been said about CEO’s.
Economic policy, aggressive cultivation of a consumer society, and political protection for corporate interests, and failure to socialize critical industries are to an extent to blame. Until this current correction, Americans in general were conditioned to a certain way of life. Infographic aside, foisting blame on people conditioned by their country to a certain way of life is ignorant and callous. And adding a disclaimer: “being poor sucks” doesn’t absolve you of those traits.
Fuck avg income, btw. Take a look at income distribution and median income.
Doctors, (some) lawyers and (some) CEO’s command high incomes because they have skills others don’t have. If you want doctor pay, go to medical school. If you want the pay of a Lowes night shift shelf stocker, drop out of high school or get 2/3 of a BA in social work from some crappy college. Llpoh doesn’t have to be absolved of anything. He lives in the real world.
Why should a 1900 dollar bill have the same buying power as a 2000 dollar bill? Why should an hour of work in 1900 be equivalent to an hour of work in 2000? The living standard between 1900 and now has clearly risen for the average person on the street so it’s safe to say hard currencies are not needed for wealth creation.
Matt – you are a fucking imbecile. Egalitarian my fat ass. Why should a society be egalitarian? A society should offer equal opportunity, but beyond that, it is ever man and woman for him or herself, based on their individual merits, drive, skills, decision making.
You taint yourself as a socialist by wanting to socialize critical industries. Government has no business owning anything. They are not capable of running anything.
Govt needs to set equal laws, then get the fuck out of the way. They have no business aiding the rich and powerful, and they sure as hell have no business redistributing wealth.
And Your comments about Americans being conditioned to a way of life is correct. Your position as to who is to blame is suspect, however. You look to blame the shepherd, while I blame the sheep. Americans have had freedom, they have just allowed it to be sucked away owing to their stupidity.
Don’t you have a union rally or something to attend?
Thanks Iska.
I’m an imbecile because my politics differ from yours?
OK.
If you think this society affords equal opportunity to all, then you’re blind.
Take a look at pay differentials of CEO’s and employees. Take a look at industry commentary on CEO pay scales, and the call for major MBA programs to reorient.
You’re an apologist for the top 10%. You offer no solution outside of calling everyone an idiot. And the sheep on this site blindly agree with you. Taint myself with socialism? When the tent collapses, your standard of living will have the most dramatic (negative) delta. What use are your ostensibly superior skills if no one is capable of paying the price you demand?
Call me what you want, this clearly is not my scene, but your opinions are not facts. Provide sources. I’m open minded, prove me wrong and I’ll concede. Until then, stfu.
Iska, I come from a family of doctors. I’m intimately familiar with the issues in the medical care industry. Take a look at the rise of NP’s, the scarcity of GP’s, and the acknowledgment of the medical community that outside of certain specializations, the skill gap between nurses and Dr’s is not as wide as once thought. Do you understand how Big Law works? How inflated the cost of legal service is?
Understand the problems before you make uninformed generalizations.