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this post was submitted on 31 May 2024
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Greed-induced. Inflation-excused.
Corporations are always greedy, so this factor never changed. It could not have been the cause of inflation, since we had greedy corporations and more inflation before.
I want to point out that your reasoning is irrational which makes your conclusion nonsense.
You didn't root cause or analyze anything, then declared yourself to be right "because".
Here I'll show you, let me use your method to "prove" something.
"The Potato Party has always been in charge in Tombo County, the hungry kids in schools are not the fault of The Potato Party because kids here have been hungry before."
We can "prove" so many things this way!
The Potato Party could have changed its policies, so your comparison is not apt. Corporations have never been not greedy, so what changed?
The pandemic, constant coverage of inflation giving them a shield to raise prices and blame inflation even when their SEC filings indicate that this is complete bullshit, and crucially greater consolidation resulting in fewer options for grocery shoppers.
Are you sure? Here's the markup since the pandemic
…a global pandemic? That excuse let them raise prices far beyond their actual cost inflation.
Yes, so the issue was people could afford to pay more when they got their stimulus. Which is the point of the stimulus, it worked 100%
The question is whether the skeptics that said the stimulus would cause inflation were right. Is it the corporate greed or does giving everyone money increase prices?
No, that’s not what the issue was. The stimulus was a drop in the bucket, and I think it’s insane to talk like people “have more money now” because they got a check for like a thousand dollars 4 years ago. That shit was gone the week after it was given, probably to rent in most cases.
The price increases were blamed on supply chain issues, which did exist, but not to the degree that could justify the increase.
There were several stimulus checks, so maybe some people spent it on rent and some saved it and spent it on going out when the shutdowns were over
You can see that people spent a whole lot more on food in 2022
Probably that the greedy became greedier. Greed isn't exactly linear, it's exponential. It used to be:
Boss makes a dollar, I make a dime
Today's version goes something like:
Boss makes a million, I don't make jack
that's why when I'm at work
I like to smoke crack
The greed is constant, but the opportunities to excuse price increases are not. Egg prices jumped up about 6x because they had the excuse of bird flu, but the prices magically went down (but stayed elevated) after the government threatened an investigation. As ineffectual as our government has been made, increasing prices out of nowhere with no plausible excuses will invite an investigation.
So my point is instead of blaming greedy corporations, we just discussed possible causes and solutions. Isn't this a more constructive conversation?
So my point is instead of blaming greedy corporations, we just discussed possible causes and solutions. Isn't this a more constructive conversation?
You admit that corporations are always greedy, so how is out of the realm of possibility that an excuse like supply chain issues (which have since been resolved) would provide the perfect opportunity for these greedy corporations to jack up prices far beyond those underlying causes and get away with it?
The margin hasn't changed much
So that means the corporations got the same % on their sales
What you thought would happen: thing X cost the corp $10 and they sold it for $15. When it costs $20 they sell it for $25
What actually happened: it cost $20 and they sold it for $30
That's because investors hate it when the margin goes down
What's the source of this graph?
Noah Smith
https://twitter.com/Noahpinion/status/1790237061179650498
A twitter post isn't a good source. Where are they getting their data from? What are "weights" in this case?
Corporations all raised prices at the same time. No competition to offset the greed. Normally that level of coordination is impossible among different companies, at least some would keep prices lower to retain customers.
The biggest con in the world. You would think people are not capable of organizing for a common cause.
That level of coordination IS possible when all you need is a bunch of CXOs and investors in a union.
You think collusion to keep prices is not possible? Does that people people agreeing on a specific set of laws and policies living in a demarcated region (a country) is not possible?