The “Producer Price Index” (PPI) is essentially the tracking of wholesale prices at three stages: Origination (commodity), Intermediate (processing), and then Final (to wholesale). Today, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) released September price data [Available Here] showing another 8.5% increase year-over-year in Final Demand products at the wholesale level. However, that’s not the bad news in this data.
While the overall September PPI was higher than expected at 0.4%, the Final Demand Producer Price for food products in September was a whopping 1.2% (14.4% annualized).
The BLS notes the driver by saying, “a major factor in the September increase in prices for final demand goods was a 15.7-percent advance in the index for fresh and dry vegetables. Prices for diesel fuel, residential natural gas, chicken eggs, home heating oil, and pork also moved higher.”
That’s a 15.7% increase in price, in one month, for fresh and dry vegetables. Annualized that’s a rate of price increase of 188.4% for vegetables. Remember the warning about farm costs (energy, fertilizer, fuel) driving field to fork inflation at harvest? This is the leading edge of that third wave of food price increases.
I have modified BLS Table-2 to focus specifically on food costs. The data is on left.
You will note that ‘row crops’ are the big drivers along with grain and seed products. This is exactly as we predicted it would be because those specific farming costs are the ones with greatest increase from energy, fuel, fertilizer, weed and insect control, and diesel costs.
All of those higher costs have been growing in the fields and will now surface at harvest. The higher farm costs transfer from the field to the fork via the food supply chain. This is only the leading edge of the price increase.
In October 2021 we first warned of the food price increases coming in distinct waves. The first was Jan, Feb and March 2022. The second wave was May through July 2022. This third wave will be bigger than the first two and starts arriving this month, October 2022.
People laughed at me when I said in late 2022 eggs were going to reach .50¢ EACH ($6/doz).
Well, in September the price of fresh eggs jumped 16.7% in a single month. That’s an annualized rate of price increase for eggs over 200%.
With hindsight you can clearly see the three waves of food price increases (BLS Table A):
Get ready and shop smart.
The October, November and December price increases in the grocery store are going to make the prior fresh food increases look small, as the full increased costs of farming operations starts to arrive at the supermarket. Unfortunately, this will coincide with a wave of gasoline price increases, and the prices of natural gas are already skyrocketing.
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Be warned, wholesale Natural gas in the northeast is projected to more than double in price year over year in Jan+Feb 2023 compared to 2022, which itself was double 2021. Forward monthly average prices are already over $15/MMBtu. That will cascade into spot electricity prices, so get off those variable rates!
Weren’t we going to supply natural gas to Europe also? That should help jack up the prices here in the US.
Noticed the local grocer was locking one door much earlier than normal the other day. Look for shoppers in urban areas to be let in in groups again before too long
Dr. Prepper: My local Sprouts on the Westside of Los Angeles is turning off half of its interior overhead lighting during the evenings, presumably, to save money.
Build Back Darker
Gives it more of a nightclub atmosphere to justify the higher prices!
Red velvet ropes and stanchions might help, maybe a large surly bouncer with a guest list to complete the look!
There is a 24-hr. Safeway in my area that used to play disco after midnight. Went once. It’s true, the freaks do come out at night.
The Chevron station near me has starting turning off all their overhead lights at night, leaving only the pump lights on. At just 7:30pm it was so dark you couldn’t even see how to insert your credit card. It was creepy there too as there was no other person in the place. Unfortunately that was it for me and I left. At $6.89/gallon for regular here in CA you would think they would not be trying to drive their customers away and would keep some lights on. This doesn’t seem like a Recession, it’s more like we are going straight to a Depression.
In Detroit, my buddy takes a lookout when going to fill up to watch his back.
Lol, I am from detroit and I guess it depends on where in “detroit” you go, but I can relate.
Armed, presumably..
Just sayin’ is seeing things very clearly. Prepare for the days your Grandparents talked about, so thankful they survived them. You need faith, family, skills, health and endurance! They are free and you don’t need the Devil government to show you or give you anything.
We need a constitutional convention.
No way we can get enough states. Too many are dem run. I propose several states, including Texas, to band together and secede. Its either that or eventually, all out war.
The backs of consumers will break with the third wave but for at least fifty percent will blame the Russians or climate change. Stolen elections always result in catastrophe. FJB
This morning when I howled over a price the lady behind the counter at Walgreens was blaming COVID for the high prices. She started with, “I don’t want to get political, but the pandemic was a once in a lifetime thing. I don’t know that it matters who’s in the White House.” Odd thing to say, since I hadn’t mentioned politics or presidents at all. But I bit, “Actually, the Biden administration has limited drilling on US land and is causing a lot of the inflation. We were energy independent under Trump.” And then she unbelievably said, “I heard that he’s only delaying the drilling until the rest of the world runs out then they’ll all have to come to us.” And so I said, “Well then why is he draining our strategic oil reserves?” To which she said, “I don’t know.” And then my transaction was over so I left. But I figure she must be hearing a lot of Biden hate in her world to jump to his defense over me letting out a whistle over the price of cotton balls.
All of these price increases are going to hit in December-February and the Puppet in the White House will immediately announce that it happened because the Republicans took control of the House in the midterms and therefore everyone started jacking up prices because we all know that the Republicans are the party of the rich…and the MSM will run with that story and all of the low-info voters will nod their heads in agreement and blame Orange Man, because he is clearly behind all of this!
I am not kidding – check back in a few months and see if I was right…
You know the Marxist progressive communistic “democrats” well my friend.
Wise Mom…You Be…
Might be a tough sell VM, they don’t take an oath until January and start work. But yea, they will do anything. Bad Moon Rising
3 Jan of odd-numbered years is the legal swearing-in date of the new convening Congress
But what horrible things will they legislate to hurt us more from November thru Jan 3? Will they get us into a nuclear war to wreak vengeance on us??
Write to your reps and call them to stop our involvement with the Ukraine and a war there.
Amen! We have to tell everyone we know to do this. We have to deluge their offices with calls and emails until they are forced to listen. I have contacted my senators and rep and only received a response from one senator with the usual talking points BS. They must all be making big bucks from this war in the form of grift and sweaty wads of cash from the MIC. They and the MSM are repeating the warmonger lies. It is Biden and the deep state globalists who are promoting nuclear war. Putin said he would defend Russia if it were attacked. The demented Biden and other pols are the ones foaming at the mouth about nukes and chemical and bioweapons. Are there any honest reporters left? I feel as if I am living in the Twilight Zone.
They will blame “the rich” for raising prices in anticipation of the red wave.
You hit the nail on the head. Globalists always deflect blame away from themselves by pitting Americans against each other. And we stupidly fall for it every time.
IMO one of President Trump’s greatest strengths was his laser focus on UNITING us as one American people to fight the real enemy, which is communism.
And Putin, COVID, and “evil” big oil.
Maybe so, but do you think the MSM stories tailored to fit the narrative, whatever that will be at the time, will actually persuade anyone to change their political beliefs? Do you think there is anyone left in the undecided middle open to
persuasion?
I don’t.
I think the trenches are dug, the battlelines are drawn and now it’s just the two sides all giving the finger at the other
side. There are no more debates(if there ever were any). Noone is interested in discussion.
It’s all “piss off”, “I’m right, you’re wrong”, “Racist Racist Racist”!
Discourse has been thrown out the window long ago.
Present company excepted, of course..:)
Mostly, except I am seeing some movement in the Black community. There are quite a few Black checkers giving me an “Amen” when I say something like, “I miss the prices I was paying under Trump.”
IMO….The reason the Black woman is still on the Plantation is she fears her help/subsidies will stop under Republicans…..This needs to be addressed in some way by the Republican party. That she is condemned to be perpetually poor as long as she votes Democrat and she is condemning her children. They also need to promise not to pull her welfare as long as she still needs it. This sounds crazy but there needs to be classes taught on how to feed your family on a budget. How to cook and prepare meals. Believe me …..those under 40 have no idea how to cook. It is one of the main drivers of poor health.
Good point, though long life experience has shown the Uniparty to be equally enamored of government programs, so no fear of S/S going away, not while I’m alive the few years I have left.
One aspect of being old was indoctrination into self-sufficiency because many of our parents directly experienced both the Great Depression and WW2. Each provided its own set of challenges to be overcome.
I don’t complain about food because even the meager SNAP benefit my fixed income allows provides plenty. I’m swimming in it, a veritable warehouse of it on the property. Why? Following an old adage dad pounded into my head…..it’s not how much money one makes, rather how one uses it.
Learning survival skills is an education that pays dividends daily. Thanks dad for that and for surviving the war. I hope God will be with me in the war to come. Coming home.
No need to check back. But not sure it will matter soon. The fuse grows short already.
You are correct. It’s also disgusting that the low info/can’t be bothered voters suck up the MSM narrative without so much as a puzzled glance.
Hope the Republicans take back the Senate too.
Exactly. Mitch is someone who supports Murkowski of all people-one of the biggest rats in all of Congress, who consistently votes for the Democrat “Torch-America” policies. WHY didn’t Trump get rid of the Turtle when he had the chance!!!!!!
Murkowski is much more than a voter. She is one of the handful who love the grift and help move the money.
Sundance has talked about this previously several time.
Right, let’s blame Trump for something over which he had no control. Who votes for Senate leader? Only Senators, that’s who. Was Trump a Senator?
Please.
Trump endorsed the Turtle for re-election, if you may recall, CirclinTD. I would bet if he hadn’t supported him we wouldn’t be stuck with this Neocon globalist undermining our country right now.
Start working to get rid of him once we control the Senate.
I’m in one of the collar counties around Philly (PA). It’s a place where you see more Democrat signs then Republican campaign signs. Mainly because the Republican ones are stolen from public areas and private homes and businesses.
I’m seeing a lot of houses that in the past have had Obama & Biden and their fellow teammates signs… not have any signs for Fetterman and Shapiro. But signs for Fetterman and Shapiro on public areas.
Signs for Oz and Mastreano are on private property and not on public, but there are more than I usually see. So either people aren’t having their signs stolen or more people are openly supporting Oz and Mastreano.
We are close enough to the election that I would expect some really die hard Dems to have had them up on their front lawns weeks ago. I wonder if even them can’t stomach Fetterman?
Isn’t that always the way it goes with this UNiparty nonsense? One side *pretends* to fight the other, and both sides take one for the team:
“HE made me do it.”
“No, HE made me do it.”
Absolutely and positively the DemScum will blame President Trump and Republicans!
FJB
Won’t need to check back as you nailed it.
When you come to a fork in the road .. .. take it.
Extended family called me crazy when I spent a work bonus on seeds, chickens, and bees.
They’re not saying a word anymore.
Reminds me, need to order more chicks. My girls will be 3 next spring.
Do you order locally or through an online hatchery? I’m planning on expanding again soon. Price of organic chicken in my area is almost $10/lb.
We buy ours from cackle hatchery in Missouri. Really healthy birds and lots of varieties to choose from.
Isn’t there a lot to understand about chicken before you try and raise them for eggs and poultry meat? Wish you all would share that wisdom. I live in the darn small toen limits. NO chickens. Thats gonna have to change I would wager.
Having lived in agriculture and animal husbandry for decades and making a living servicing that industry, I never raised crops nor animals even though I could. Why? I understood, only too well, the complexities and costs of it, not to mention it’s a full time job. One can’t go wander off and leave it on a whim. One can hire employees to run it, sure, but as any of us in business know, once one hires that first employee, it’s growth or death. Again, that full time job.
I recently rebuilt the laying area of a chicken coop for a neighbor, for free. I didn’t ask her how much those eggs she was gleefully gleaning were costing her in reality, even with my free help.
She didn’t appear to want my advice, both about agriculture in general and skills specific to my decades in business, so OK, ’nuff said. Now when she complains I nod my head and go back to my work. I don’t complain. I do. Nobody cares. Accepted.
I got several books (library and gifts) before I took the plunge, but the best teacher for me is experience. I started with a small (4) flock of chicks and no expectations. I now have over four dozen. Do you use Telegram? Ice Age Farmer has a TON of groups for various “homesteading” and they’re a wealth of information for anything you want to learn about by people living it.
Love Cackle! Got some this summer and it’s the first batch I’ve had that I didn’t lose a chick. Good to know that wasn’t a fluke. 🙂
My extended family is still looking at me funny. And I got a lecture the other day on how our chickens and rabbits should get to free range in the yard. So I failed to mention that the rabbits are meat rabbits, and the chickens are there for production, and I am more concerned with their continued ability to produce food than how they feel about their cages.
My ignorance re cages is real. I grew up on a farm in the 40s-50s. Our chickens didn’t “free range”–but there was a large fenced area outside the coop where they enjoy the daily feeding off insects, grasses, etc. Their egg production was consistent year round.
I don’t understand why caging is considered a guarantee of production. Any farmer in our community who might have thought about caging their chickens….absolutely unheard of. Would have been considered unnecessary and cruel, sort of like “I can do this just because I’m really big and you can’t stop me.” So, yeah, I don’t get it.
Being on the family farm, I was fully capable and practiced at chopping off the head of any selected chicken when it was time, so I’m not all gushy about animal life per se, but I don’t understand why caging a chicken makes egg production more dependable.
Because the foxes, coyotes and hawks don’t eat them.
And thus, on our farm (as I said) a large fenced area outside, adjacent the coop….and the access into the coop available all day long so the chickens would go rushing into the coop when a hawk flew over.
I remember my dad telling me when they moved the chicken shed, it was raining and the chickens were huddled together on the spot where they moved it from…..
Thanks, Max. You beat me to it.
Yeah, this was our problem – we have a suburban back yard and we thought we could ask my mom who grew up on a chicken farm, how to take care of chickens. She wasn’t much help; turns out there are many differences between raising a handful and a hen-house full of hens. We have lost chickens to raccoons and foxes, and had issues with our chickens getting into neighbors’ gardens and neighbors’ dogs getting into our yard! So it’s not about the egg production, which is far from dependable, it’s about having chickens survive pullethood.
…ok, and as I described, a reasonably-sized chicken-wire-fenced area adjacent to the coop will provide the protection and limitations they need for survival…..we never let ours run free, and neither did we keep them caged up.
At night, the coop-door that they used was dropped and locked, and during the day, it was open so they go in and out as they wished. We usually had about 30-40 laying hens.
If it’s not about production, consider a simple chicken-wire fenced area with a few steel posts. Not complicated, really. Just a thought,
That’s what we do have. That’s what I meant by a cage. That’s what my relative thinks is cruel…
If I were ever going to raise chickens I would do it as you described. Seems very reasonable.
Regarding the Hawks, fox, and coyotes…farming is never as easy as it looks, is it? I can remember planting tomatoes only to have the tops of every single one nipped off by deer. Well, I’m no quitter! We replanted immediately and tomatoes grew!Only to have them eaten by a woodchuck. I do containers very close to the house now and we also have a dog.
I live in a subdivision and a neighbor started with a handful of chickens – was tolerated but then he got a rooster – now is the pariah of subdivision. I’m half deaf and far enough away that who cares.
Foxes and hawks.
My chickies all free range. Who can afford to feed them?! Shells like rocks. Happy
Have only lost one in 4 years (never say never) to a passing panther
Love my Aussies! And they love scrambled eggs in butter 💕
Mm hmm! Add in some mushrooms, cheese and bacon bits, and it’s a meal fit for a king. Of course most days we just have boiled eggs, toast and coffee. Hubs always has 2 or 3 boiled eggs at bedtime as well.
Free range chickens = hawk buffet
Not to mention coyotes, foxes, raccoons…
One family uses portable “tractors” they’ve made from pvc and wire mesh that allow the rabbits and chickens to graze in their yard. Once they’ve eaten everything in one spot, they just move it to the next. They say they’ve never mown their grass since they started doing that!
Watch out! The government encourages us to register our home gardens. Will they use this information to force us to share our hard work with others??? Here’s your sign! https://www.fsa.usda.gov/news-room/news-releases/2022/usda-opens-peoples-garden-initiative-to-gardens-nationwide QUOTE: “WASHINGTON, September 9, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is expanding its People’s Garden Initiative to include eligible gardens nationwide. School gardens, community gardens, urban farms, and small-scale agriculture projects in rural, suburban and urban areas can be recognized as a “People’s Garden” if they register on the USDA website and meet criteria including benefitting the community, working collaboratively, incorporating conservation practices and educating the public. Affiliate People’s Garden locations will be indicated on a map on the USDA website, featured in USDA communications, and provided with a People’s Garden sign.
“We welcome gardens nationwide to join us in the People’s Garden effort and all it represents,” said Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, “Local gardens across the country share USDA’s goals of building more diversified and resilient local food systems, empowering communities to come together around expanding access to healthy food, addressing climate change and advancing equity.” In RI you are encouraged to register your bee hives.
Actually, I do all I can to hide mine.
Yeah, read that web page. The USDA thinks that all they need to do is give you a sign and in return you will be happy to register, do paperwork on your inputs, possible inspections etc.
Gov bureaucracy at work 🙄
No worries about home gardens. At least not as far as these People’s Gardens are concerned. Per the USDA website, “People’s Gardens can be located on federally owned or leased property, at schools, faith-based centers and other places within the community. They cannot be located at private residences.”
We’ve been keeping the heat off (WNY) and spending that money on food. It feels good to fill the freezer and stock up the pantry. We even bought a vacuum sealer for food. I don’t know maybe we’re crazy but better safe than sorry.
A year before COVID if someone told us they’d lock down the better half of the planet, we’d have laughed.
I take nothing for granted. And no matter what, I’ve ensured that my children will be able to eat.
My garden was bigger this year and my pantry is the biggest it’s ever been with both home grown and store bought food.
Congratulations! I love hearing things like that. 🙂
I noticed bags of chips at the local store near me in Mexifornia are now over $5 a bag.
Yeah I used to go shopping on Saturday mornings and get great deals. I went this past Saturday and spent $130! $20 was for beer and $40 was meat, not much. Things are way worse than being reported. It’s interesting watching these liberals whistle past the grave yard.
My newly remodeled meijer also added to carts for their remodel.
the carts are way smaller now. I think it was by design, so when our bill is $200 we think “well, my cart was jam-packed so I guess it’s OK”.
*added NEW carts for remodel
Mm hmm. I’ve started making my own by cutting up corn tortillas and cooking them in oil. Or sometimes I just eat popcorn.
One might think they increased the price to encourage eating more kale…..
Same in FL.
It’s hard to get worked up over numbers like 0.4 and 1.2.
How about Exponentials Johnny Dollar, from your radio shows you always seemed like a smart kinda joe. don’t say you’re losing your edge. Not Johnny Dollar.
Losing my edge- no way.
Yours truly
Johnny Dollar
Gonna be $3 Johnny pretty soon…
I bought a basket of groceries the other day that rang up a $100 tab. 2 years ago, that would have been a $50 basket. It was staggering.
Sam’s Club flank steaks are half the size they once were and the total price is still higher.
I went to the grocery store last night. A clamshell pkg of salad greens, $8. One cucumber, $1.30 A 12 pack of sparkling water $5.38 Kerry Gold butter $4.50 for a half pound.
Most of my shopping is done around the outside of the grocery store. It seems to be the most expensive place these days.
10 pack of Kraft max-n-cheese $9.00. BOGO angel hair spaghetti $1.99
I left the store with a third of a cart full, out $178
That’s the problem. The 0.4% is the aggregate, which averages a 15% month-over-month increase in vegetables with declines in coffee, beef and chicken.
Beef in PA had already skyrocketed (stew beef, aka leftover chunks, is $8.49/lb at Wegmans for example) so any decline is welcome. Unless we see a -50%, we aren’t back to where we were under Trump.
Herds are being sent to market for lack of feed, drought effects. So meat prices are artificially suppressed this year. Small herds coming next couple of years. Not good.
Isn’t part of that also the number of animals being brought to market because it’s too expensive to feed them? The prices are going down now but when that is no longer happening, look out.
Exactly. I miss SC after October.
Kroger’s ad items are fewer and their internet login has been wonky for me. I started in retail grocery in 1973 and was front line until late 90s – much worse now than late 70s
Yep, I worked energy in the 70’s and IMO everything is much worse now than then. Hard to believe after dealing with LBJ, Nixon, Ford and Carter along with corporate madness. I saw it servicing big oil. Still, the big picture today is far more ominous. God be with us.
I shop at Wegman’s but not often because they are so high.
I watch other local stores for their sales and cherry pick.
My local Walmart and Publix had five pound bags of potatoes for $6.99 and $7.99 this week – those numbers I can get worked up over when I am used to paying $4-5 dollars for a 10 lb bag. Walmart had many bare shelves of fresh veggies that once were always full too. Do you do any grocery shopping in your household?
Here in SoCal I used to be able to buy a ten pounder for $1.99, and that wasn’t long ago. When I first got married and started raising kids (admittedly a long time ago) a gallon of milk could be had for $1.25, and bread could sometimes be found at two loaves for a dollar if it was on sale. I’ve been saying for awhile now that I’m really worried about this next generation of children who aren’t getting optimal nutrition. And yet California supposedly needs to cut back on the water used for farming. We grow 60% of our nation’s produce already. I’m no expert on Florida, but do they still have orange groves there, or have they done like us and foolishly allowed the developers to plow them up and build everywhere?
Florida still produces a lot of citrus and avocados. Also berries-strawberries and blueberries
And a lot of beef
Yes, but citrus has moved farther south due to freezes killing the crop and development. The groves are not something you now see for miles and miles.
In my area in Central Florida, the orange grooves are now subdivisions sadly. I have bought oranges that say they are from South Africa at Costco, yet I can’t find local oranges! Plant City is known for strawberries which we love.
Yes, potatoes are getting high, milk is another one all over the place. At least I stocked coffee deep.
Been paying attention to fresh produce, etc since May as per sundances’s articles. Sprouts has been very lean on potatoes and onions..those bins are usually full year round.
This summer little to no corn or okra (they usually do local farms for that) and definitely no 6 for $1 corn this summer.
It’s been weird to see the lack of food. Shelves bare at heb, target and sprouts.
Also, my natural gas bill is typically $26/mth from May to Oct…it’s now running $44/mth- 40+% increase!
Corn was scarce all summer in commiemommysota also. Often $1/ear or more, and the ears were small and not fully developed.
My brother in Minnesota reported that he and a few other experienced gardeners he knows had to plant a few crops three times due to bad seeds.
Potatoes at Aldi – ALDI!!! – are $6 for 10 pounds for russet and regular white. Don’t even think about the fancy potatoes. If you have to ask, you can’t afford them.
Some people in Canada were commenting about the sales they got on potatoes, broccoli, etc., for their Thanksgiving. I’m hoping we get the same but it’s 6 weeks away so I’m not counting on that. A lot can change in six weeks.
Three years ago, my local market had a sale on russet potatoes. FREE! (limit 5 lbs.) I guess his local farmer had a bumper crop, or he highjacked a potato truck.
Where are you in SC, Mari? Food Lion has Yukon Golds on sale this week, $2.99 for 5lbs. I know that’s the same price but we like the gold better for roasting.
Here in SoCal…. today our NG gas bill was in the mid 40s. Just for hot water, cooking range and whatever fees and taxes and what not the Commies in Sacramentograd have come up with.
That’s about twice what it was last year.
Same here, and I’m in the Mojave Desert. BTHAT means I don’t use a lot of gas.
I just bought a dozen eggs the other day… $7.99 doz (organic)…in so cal…. Maybe $10 by Christmas? FJB!!!
$6 to $7 for free range at the farmers market the last time I checked in early September. They always sell out.
I’m substituting Bob’s Red Mill Egg Replacer and/or plain, unsweetened apple sauce for eggs in baking that doesn’t require whipped egg whites. I’ll save the actual eggs for making egg dishes.
Safeway coming out with ‘Jiminy Cricket’ eggs in the Spring…..
The juice from a can of garbanzo can be used same as eggs
I do flax seed or chia eggs, better for you anyhow
CA you also have to remember your Assembly passed an Animal Humanitarian law that went into effect 1 Jan last year that at the time they said would raise pork, chicken, and egg prices there by 40%…dictates minimum size for pens or cages to even be sold in the state….they said it would be adopted in other areas as well but I haven’t seen it
Bought dozen Lucerne Jumbo in Dallas yesterday, $3.69. Lots of free range at $5.99 & $6.99….that ‘free range’ must charge more rent…..
Kroger used to have 18 large eggs for 88 cents. This week they went up from $3.38 to $4.49. Almost 450% inflation in 2 years.
Deli-Bakery bread is off the charts. Some sort of loaf bread is always on sale so that remains close to the old days, so far. Glad I have my holidaze goods in house.
Guess its time for me to start baking my own bread once again.
Homemade sour dough is sooo good. I miss visiting ‘Frisco’ and the Tadich Grill. Would order oysters, grilled salmon and watch the starched apron waiter comment on the amount of booze in my Long Island Iced tea. 30 years and a galaxy away…..wonder if they have survived destruction of their town & state….
Oh, how I loved to visit San Francisco, stay at the Clift, great meals at the Tadich Grill, elegant evenings at L’Etoile. Wonderful.
We rely on bisquits, tortillas and homemade flapjacks.
My children bought me a mixer with a bread hook for my bday this year. Yes! 🥰
King Arthur flour is now $7.99 for a 5 pound bag.
I have buckets of wheat berries and grind my own flour. They are sealed for 25 year shelf life. Cost when I got them was 40 cents per pound milled. Other ingredients made it a $1 pound loaf. I keep yeast in the freezer
I keep my yeast in the freezer too. I’m going to move next door to you with all that flour!😂💜
What do you use for grinding? I have a ton of berries but haven’t found a grinder with a reliable rating.
I did that years ago when we lived in Seattle. All electric kitchen so no nice gas pilot to help with rising? Cool days. I put the bread in the car in the sunny driveway with the windows rolled up. Field expediency!
All electric after decades of gas was new to me too but I found that turning the oven to low, like 170, then shutting it off, has worked great for raising dough. So glad I hung onto the big KitchenAid mixer in the divorce; my exW thought I was nuts for that but I guess she thought I was nuts anyway.
I don’t bake bread often; pizza dough is the primary product. Like yourself, I do use the sun, mainly for drying clothes. Nice clothes line on the front porch to catch the sun through the trees. I built a garden rack out there so will try your idea of raising dough in the sun. I use the big metal mixing bowl from the mixer topped by a dinner plate. Thanks!
Glad my wife makes her own bread…
hubby makes all our bread goods, pies, cookies, pastries, rolls,artisan bread and whole wheat bread. He loves to bake so I let him and frankly his taste better than mine,lol.
aldis bread 99cents/ dollar tree 1.25 make cheap banana bread with cheap cake mix and 3 very ripe bananas and nutmeg
It will be interesting to see how the MSM reacts to this when the SHTF.
The problem is, is the lazy who have always been lazy are getting benefits that keep up with inflation. I don’t know how many are getting these handouts, but they will keep voting to get them. The ass sitters are now better off than the workers, and I am starting to see locals get vocal about benefit scroungers also using food banks. I think they are right. Food banks should be for low wage earners.
Part of economic warfare and going on strike ala Atlas Shrugged has been sucking up resources from the enemy and voting and taking other action against them whenever opportunities present themselves. The enemy is the state, more precisely the humans in the Communist regime and all who collaborate with them.
It’s simply another challenge to succeed at. Being old and appearing as a grey man has its benefits.
These people suck, and Joe Biden didn’t win.
Oh, and have you seen the price of BEER lately?
Don’t drink beer, but my favorite wine has QUADRUPLED since May. I’m glad I stocked up months ago but I’m rationing it now.
I need to restock!!
Don’t drink alcohol at all, but do occasionally cook with it. However my one vice has always been Diet soda, which I’m now replacing with sun tea.
<Oh, and have you seen the price of BEER lately?>
Now you’ve got my attention 🙂
Booze thru the roof and legal recreational cannabis is $89oz in Michigan – go figure
I drank Diet Pepsi daily for DECADES, usually 32-48 ounces per day. It kept going up and up in price, even when it went on sale, so I gave it up cold turkey on August 16 when I was down to one 6 pack. I eventually gave that 6 pack away. I guess giving it up was a smart move because their prices will be up 17% this year (https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/pepsicos-average-product-prices-spike-17-year-over-year). I just couldn’t justify spending that much money on junk. It was taking away from my chocolate budget!
Yes! I have been buying up lots of clearance beer in order to get a decent price.
They want to starve us back to the Stone Age.
No, they just want to starve the Africans and Asians so they can walk over their corpses to claim the minerals.
Since we get a lot of fresh vegetables in the winter from South America, will those be selling at similar high prices?
Yes. The wholeseller and retailler will maximize profits and jack up the prices. So, we will be paying more.
This seems like misplaced blame. Those businesses will be in the same pinch with the rest of us. Best to keep the focus on the real villains, the ones setting policy that drive these prices.
You can also Focus on who is setting the final prices.
Bingo. Focus on the real villains. The Senile Demented Vegetable and his “administration” comprised of freaks, weirdos, liars and losers.
Sundance had some interesting articles I believe in 2015 about the price of food and how it is set. Turns out it isn’t supply and demand….Our/US food prices set higher by big AG so that they can sell to the 3rd world cheaper. Then our low income and big AG are paid/subsidized by food stamp program. Middle class gets screwed.
Yep, and with the rise of corporate fascism, expect it to get worse. As long as the humans responsible remain vertical and breathing, we will continue upon this path. Plan accordingly.
Produce, AND for that matter all groceries aren’t super profitable. They have a LOT of overhead, and shipping prices have skyrocketed since puddinhead Joe moved into the White House.
That is false.
No, they won’t be more expensive if they don’t get here.
Transporting it is only going to cost more & when they start running out of fertilizer, the harvests will only get smaller.
3rd world famine isn’t far behind & with a virtue signaling gubmint, our harvests will be feeding anyone but us.
Yes, and don’t rule out a rail worker strike yet. Even if Brandon orders them to go back if/when they strike, I’m hearing noises that it’s Atlas Shrugged time. Then patriots will move. Best case is if a war in Europe/Asia breaks out. Trifecta.
Kroger had Gorgeous huge blueberries from Peru yesterday -$2.99 a quart
Don’t buy them please….Our farmers blueberries sit in storage because food chains won’t buy them. They are going out of business . Peru does not have the stringent rules our Farmers are under. Buy at Patriots Foods.
Transportation cost…
Sundance writes,
“People laughed at me when I said in late 2022 eggs were going to reach .50¢ EACH ($6/doz).”
I didn’t laugh, I added a dozen new hens to our flock.
I let my hens set and invested in an incubator.Also grew mangels and talked to a local feed guy about what veggies to add to wheat to make a scratch. So I am adding 3 extra rows of Alaskan Peas (good dried or fresh) and 2 more rows of carrots, plus more mangels. Also tried sugar beets this year, still need to make the sugar but the beets grew great.
Good for you. Hat Tip!
Wish I could do that kind of stuff but I live in a small town in a 55+ mobile home park. So instead I concentrate on canning and drying food.
Get a Gardyn.
https://mygardyn.com/
Yes it isn’t cheap to purchase but it works quite well, and other than buying large vegs like cucumbers and peppers and such, I have rarely bought lettuce, chard, kale etc for the past year. I eat a large salad a day so salad items for my grocery bill are a big expense.
I estimate I’ve saved about $50 a month on salad items, so it has almost paid for itself in a year.
Full disclosure, I have no financial ties to these people, I’m just a happy customer
I forgot to mention that I also added a rooster to the flock (the boss hen was NOT happy) and I also bought an incubator.
Now I can start raising my own birds!
My girls have blessed me with 16 new babies this season!
The diapers and birthdays…good luck!
Food prices go up weekly. Have been doing that since June.
Bug prices remain low. Just saying…
Wonder how the bug man will do his work at the insect plant? Their required to do pest control.
My chickies free range but I supplement with a bug based feed (no corn or soy). I’m hoping the price doesn’t go up because you know why!!
We need Trump and America First policies to fix this. DeSantis’ establishment GOP policies will not fix this mess.
Eggs are $3 a dozen here for now.
Where is here?
Aldi $2-2.50 doz in s Indiana. Price that got me was $4.99 on 1.5lb bags of gourmet b size red potatoes
$3.09 for a dozen eggs at Sprout’s here in Bel Air, Md, 45 minutes from lovely Baltimore.
I buy the cheapest eggs. The also have at Sprout’s here eggs costing up to $8/dozen. I see people buying the expensive eggs and just shake my head. They don’t even look at the price.
Sundance clearly has formidable knowledge of the agriculture supply chain.
I have been paying $6 doz for organic free range eggs for some time produced from a small family farm in a beautiful area north of Chattanooga. The company did huge amounts of work to get into Whole Paycheck, but subsequently closed and sold the flock of high spec chickens. Shame, those were not even comparable to big ag eggs, thoroughly wonderful.
Thankfully, a local farm is doing similar work and getting better and better. You wouldn’t think eggs would be that different.
I am having difficulty with supply from a local top notch dairy and a bakery, both of vastly superior quality. I don’t do milk and bread, coffee either for myself.
Sundance does great work on these issues, but there is no data yet on whether the source supplier’s increased cost are being passed on or absorbed. I’m thinking it’s mostly absorbed.
The end result will be loss of supply from the specialty producers first, followed by greatly increased cost from big Agra. Then the European style restrictions will come, and it will be a day’s wage for a loaf of bread.
Help your local producers now.
I have my favorite vendors at my Farmers market.
I am thankful that my small city has one.
The produce, milk and eggs may cost a little bit more…but well worth it!
“Whether the source supplier’s increased cost are being passed on or absorbed. I’m thinking it’s mostly absorbed.”
The source supplier’s increased costs must be passed on if the business is going to stay in business. No egg-selling business will sell a dozen eggs for $3.00 if the cost of producing that dozen eggs is $5.00.
Yep, I watched how buy American while competing with those who bought Chinese destroyed my business. Customers weren’t the least bit concerned. Money is all that matters. IDK, die for a philosophy? Looks like that’s destiny now.
To start. The Bible says that in the end times a barrel of gold will be traded for a loaf of bread. I’m starting to understand that now.
Thank you, Sundance. Pantry and stores are filled, but I am still stocking. Rice for 20 pound at Walmart is currently under $10, and expected to be over $20 by spring 2023. Rice isn’t for me, but my dogs. Dog food is rapidly vanishing, and stocks need building to make my own!
I’ve had good luck finding cat food, treats and other supplies at both Chewy and Petflow. Chewy currently has a promotion where you get a $30 electronic gift card if you spend $100 on most things on their website. We are stocked on food until April so I bought nine 19 pounds boxes of cat litter. The Fedex person will hate me tomorrow.
I dumped chewy after they dumped Mike Lindell
Be kind and tip well.
Problem I have with dry dog food, is the fats and oils used go rancid. They have also started removing use by dates on dry dog food. You have to be really careful, because the fatty fish meal in dry dog food can really make a dog ill.
I got myself a freeze dryer and spread the trays with cooked rice (cheap) blended with canned tuna, or salmon (in water) and cooked green beans from the garden. Its a good balance of carbs/protein. I am able to feed 3 dogs for just $2 a day. I give booster/rabies/heart worm injections myself, and have found a cheap source of anti-biotics and flea treatments for them.
What is your ratio of rice to salmon/chicken to green beans ?
My Siberian husky/Australian Shepard mix eats Merrick dog food. $4/lb.
What a fantastic mix. I bet that’s a great dog.
It’s probably a long needed reality check for our decades of poor spending.
Next up will be consumer credit crashes, auto loan defaults and layoffs.
I am waiting for the car repos to get an upgrade. I think Christmas time looks good, as the people who like to pretend they have everything will have massive credit card debts to look forward to. I have zero pity for those who live beyond their means
Normally I’m in that camp, since the 60’s anyway, but in the current milieu, taking it all in, those going after consumers on the ground better be mindful of overwatch.
Covid taught us how little life means to the overlords. That’s a sword that cuts both ways.
Maybe this will wake people up if it isn’t already too late.
USDA manages a database to identify the self-sustainers
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2022/10/usda_manages_a_database_to_identify_the_selfsustainers.html
From a USDA webpage which touts the project:
Following the catchy introduction is a cheerful invitation to “register your local garden!”
Could this maybe, just maybe, be an insidious attempt to collect data on those who can easily survive without constant government intervention, therefore invalidating many of the reasons used to support its legitimacy?
Or, in the nearly impossible scenario that this initiative is a brainchild of dimwitted but well-meaning federal simpletons, is it possible to conceive a future where the data is weaponized? (Recent FBI and IRS conduct provides us with an answer to that rhetorical question.)
They want to know where to send the robbers and the thieves once they can’t get food…just my cynical guess.
That can be useful if one wishes to send such humans to God. Use it. Sincerely, the criminals of the world, whether they wear hoods or suits, won’t be missed when they’re dead. Who taught me that? They did.
Keystone Pipeline cancellation was ‘mistake,’ economist under Obama, Clinton admits
https://iotwreport.com/keystone-pipeline-cancellation-was-mistake-economist-under-obama-clinton-admits/
I may be a simpleton… I mean with actual degrees in Physics and Math what do I know about the “Science” of Economics, huh?
But, honestly, you don’t need no stinkin’ fancy degree in Economics to know shutting down the Keystone Pipeline was a bonehead political decision.
But, you see, I ain’t no economist, no siree… my charts have real numbers and real equations.
Two months ago I stashed up on espresso beans… ten bucks for 2 lbs.
Last week I went to look… they are now 17 bucks for 2 lbs.
70% up in two months.
I went to Costco two weeks ago. Bought no hard liquor, no beef/chicken/pork/fish. Just milk, half and half, some cheese, veggies, house cleaning products, laundry detergent, sparkling water. french bread… half a cart. Six bottles of wine… all on sale, less than 15 bucks per bottle.
$650 bucks.
That is INFLATION.
Wow. That’s much more than my tiny disability pension. Thankfully I own my mobile home free and clear. If anything happens to hubs, though, I’ll be on the street. He’s said the same thing about me.
If you’re on your own land, look into your options. State programs to defer/pay your property taxes, homesteading, anything that protects your life and health while you’re here.
You’re fortunate to have a partner. Mine left when a BBD came along. That’s a California thing, always looking for a BBD, in polite language a bigger better deal.
Knowledge is power. The Treehouse is a gift that keeps giving. Best wishes to you, signed just an old person living in the forest.
I don’t drink, but Aldi wine at $4 is supposed to be very good
Great item for bartering.
Hyper inflation here we come! Thanks UNIPARTY.
Looking forward to my Social Security check increase. I read it’s going to be 8.7%. That will help, for a few months.
Not really, at least for me. I’ve noticed that every time there’s even a tiny increase, medicare part B goes up to match it. Not to mention Co pays.
Not this year. Part B is going to DROP by 3%.
https://www.altafiber.net/news/read/article/the_associated_press-social_security_recipients_expected_to_get_big_ben-ap
Yes, apparently a very rare occurrence. Given the totality of the economics in the MIC and life in general, a pretty odd one too. Why a decrease in Medicare now? Hmm… is it like Brandon’s July 4 savings propaganda, or selling off the strategic reserve for a few pennies less at the pump, buying votes?
In any event, folks on truly limited incomes (myself on purpose, Atlas Shrugged) may qualify for their state paying their Part B premiums and co-pays/deductibles, as well as all or a portion of Part A if they don’t have the necessary quarters in.
Play the game; know the enemy.
people who vote Dem/Rino or who ”count” votes or media liars have it coming. The rest of us are also stuck on that same crazy bus. There will be a reset but maybe the globalists and the liars will be reset. Growing up in the 50’s and 60’s was idyllic for me.I get to buckle up for crazy times ahead.I bugged out of a ”world class” city years ago.
Its going to be awesome when the celebs eating in the 5 star restaurants get their plates taken by the homeless. I’m looking forward to the WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD look on their faces.
What are we worried about? The Obamas will rescue us all starting in January, 2025 when price controls are imposed from Washington due to the “economic emergency” caused by Republicans in Red States. The solution will be to do away with individual states which are no longer necessary. All “solutions” will come from our Betters in all-knowing Washington! Rejoice!
So I guess having 35 chickens is not overkill. Neighbors have been asking for eggs. I sell them for $3/doz. I don’t intend upon raising prices. I just want to make sure my little holler, and the people in it, have good food to eat. Even if you live in the suburbs, most will allow 3-5 chickens as long as you don’t get a rooster. It would be worth the effort to build a small coop and get a few. Otherwise, city dwellers should find the closest Farmers Market and get to know the farmers. Buy direct. One day a month, go visit all the small farms and stock up.
Isn’t this a sad state of affairs… all because of the Brandon Administration.
Thanks, Joe. I believe soon we will start seeing people dying from hunger in North America and Europe.
Not quite soon. First the looting will happen.
Yes, and remember the roof Koreans. I do.
I both dread and appreciate seeing this feature twice per month, one PCR for CPI and once for PPI. I prepare for my family in part based on these analyses.
But, as I’ve commented before, to annualize a monthly rate of increase, one does not multiply by 12. One takes the twelfth power. Multiplying gives a _falsely optimistic_ estimation of the potential increase.
Imagine a food item costs $1, and is subject to inflation of 10%. Multiplication implies it will increase by a dime each month, and after a year it will cost $2.20. But, in reality, it increases by a dime the first month, for $1.10, then 11 cents the second, for $1.21, then 12.1 cents, giving $1.331, then $1.4641, ….. the twelfth term is $3.13. Compounding. Anyone with a mortgage or a credit card should get it.
in essence you are multiplying the initial value by the rate of increase twelve times, as opposed to multiplying the initial value by twelve times the rate of increase.
So, for all foods, 1.2% monthly increase is 15.4%, not 14.4% increase.
Vegetables, 1.157^12 = 5.75, a 575%, not 188% increase.
Eggs, 1.167^12 = 6.38, and 638% is definitely more than 200%, you’re right.
Monthly inflation of 10% or higher is the kind of third-world stuff that leads to needing a wheelbarrow full of bills to buy a loaf of bread, because compound interest is a b*tch.
I wish I could follow your calculations. Never very good at some math. It seems like good information, if only I could comprehend the entirety of it.
While understanding the complexities of economics can be helpful, and it is quite interesting, one can keep it simple and remember their personal power….
We each contribute to the whole in some way, most of us by work, we save, we spend, we invest, we borrow. That creates an enormous power matrix, one we recently saw implemented by the Canadians with their bank run.
Atlas Shrugged. Be selfish; a good, healthy selfish. See the enemy for who they really are. If one believes in faith and eschews violence, good. Plenty of power to wield. Coordinate, communicate and get moving.
Well, Joe does have a way of F–ing things up. He’s just showing the world to what extent he can F– things up. Ukraine, other foreign relations, and the U.S. economy. Yee-haw!!!!!
Obama Tried to Warn Us: ‘Don’t Underestimate Joe’s Ability to F— Things Up’ (freebeacon.com)
Remember, FJB is just the vessel to deliver what we’re getting now. Remind people that they must remove the politicians, that provide support for these policies, and over time the administrative state must also be purged if there is to be a chance of different outcomes.
Nothing good coming over the horizon.
I was at the grocery store yesterday and got into a conversation with another shopper about the prices. I thought she was going to cry when she told me she did not buy meat anymore and that her daughter’s grocery bill to feed her 4 children was $400.00. See a lot of anxiety in many shoppers.
🙏 Prayer up. Know it. Not continually. But almost.
My company, an industrial equipment maker, has stopped trying to raise prices as they are losing market share to foreign competitors. There is a limit as to what people/ customers will pay if there is some kind of substitute product available, even an inferior one. The squeeze is on. Biden’s inflation is going to wreck many companies and cost jobs. Thank you Mitch McConnell for enabling one of the most destructive administrations since Jimmy Carter.
Yep, I saw the writing on the wall during the last crash but stuck it out until Covid hit and started selling machinery excess to needs to pay bills, then said screw it all, and shrugged. Now I stare at all the made in America raw materials that formerly went out the door in widgets to industry and, well, shrug. Screw them.
We are all in a for a world of hurt, for some that got hooked on mailbox checks the pain is going to be even worse.
When pumping gas 3 weeks ago, I asked my fellow pampers, “Do you believe Joe Biden got 81 million votes?” Two guys said “No,” and the woman just looked at her shoelaces. Nobody voted for this.
Wow. I also have zero doubt that firms are taking advantage of the situation by tacking on additional dollars and/or shrinking package size. With people expecting higher prices the big ag firms can (and will) contribute to the problem.
Shrinkflation, is so they don’t have to raise the price. You just get less product.
What’s interesting and I need to do some more research is that electronic evidence of shrinkflation on selected items that I track appears to be getting memory holed. This means past orders of the same product, the electronic invoices, are being altered to reflect the new improved size. Still more research to be done.
If true, unsurprising. Look at all the gaslighting and memory holing that’s occurred in the last few years, Covid being a great example. FUBAR.
“Let the hunger games begin.. May the odds be ever in your favor.”
Thanks once again to Sundance for keeping us informed on where things are headed. It’s easy sometimes to get caught up in the day to day and let your preparation slide. Time to take things to another level and prepare for housing family members if the need arises.
Yup. I have already notified my sister and her family. Get rid of some furniture and install a couple of beds. Make the living room a large bedroom.
The other nasty aspect of higher prices: farms cannot afford to feed their stock. At our local Amish market chain (Detwiler’s) here in SW Florida, we have seen a huge INFLUX of bargain-priced meets: chicken, beef, pork. So one assumes the precursor to this was a decision to “get product to market because it is a losing proposition,” telling me there will be even less meat product available, and at much higher prices. It just don’t look good.
Correct!
None of us laughed at you. I bought a freezer and stocked it. We are eating at Spring prices today because of your predictions
Freezer, especially a chest freezer of the absorption style, is a great SHTF/subsistence device.
One caveat, as a neighbor across the road found out during our ice storm last winter, even in cold weather, if the power is out long enough, in our case a couple weeks, even a chest freezer will lose food to spoilage. I wasn’t around to help her get the generator set up and she lacked knowledge to survive the power outage so fled to a neighbor’s house in the forest.
The lesson was, while having a stockpile of food is great, one must plan to preserve it. Solutions are as individual as circumstances.
After being on of those only lights on in the area folks during past blackouts, I went down a different path, shelf stable food and cold food that can easily be preserved in a cold box lowered into the creek. Why? I learned, firsthand, how expensive it was to live one’s normal lifestyle in the midst of disaster or adverse conditions. For some that’s a great solution. At my age, even with the skills, I have no desire to be inured to it. YMMV.
I have a solar array and 120vac inverter for gas hot water heater and the freezer, just in case
Lindsey Graham saying it’s all Putin’s fault and send more printed $$$ to the Ukies! McConnell and Mittens chortling in the corner again.
Yesterday, for the first time in a long while, I drove through McDonalds. A Quarter Pounder w/cheese costs $8.29! No fries, no drink, just the burger. Yikes.
To help offset restaurant costs, use their apps if you have a smartphone. Also, Circle K and other travel stops have apps where they also offer food and drink coupons. There are some nice promotions offered.
I know some will say to avoid fast food, but a lot of people have jobs that require travel, and fast food is their option.
Retired Magistrate here: You can freeze eggs. Beat the whites and yolks of the eggs together and put the eggs in an ice cube tray. Thaw out when ready to use.
So I’d love to hear what others are doing.
I have a deep pantry, well stocked. As well as a large freezer. I’ve shopped at discount stores and farmers markets.
The problem is replacement costs. I bought a lot of my stock when prices were a lot lower. Farmers markets around Ocala FL are not at all cheap. Even bulk buying locally and online is expensive. There is nowhere cheap any more that I have found.
I stretch the meat, but I do buy high quality hormone/antibiotic free. vegetables are expensive. Potatoes are expensive. Rice is the least expensive especially in bulk. It’s crazy.
I have some small gardens that save me quite a bit on salad things, squash and beans, but I do not have the time for a large garden.
I don’t eat dairy of any kind, nor eggs. I’m a cancer survivor and these items are known accelerants as they contain growth hormones.
Any other ideas for vegetables or high quality meat? Potatoes?
We occasionally buy from misfits.com. some prices are pretty good. We also shop at Kroger and only buy on sale items, except for cat food. That stuff is almost triple last year (when you can find it at all). Try buying local produce if prices are OK and blanch/freeze them asap for later when it really gets bad.
What I’ve done is take advantage of price errors and sales and coupons to selectively increase stock in key items.
Each person’s needs will necessarily be different. I have to watch diet too due to gall bladder issues but have adapted to that. I’ve found fish and other seafood items, after experimentation, to be a palatable, and economical replacement for meat. Forex, I haven’t eaten fresh red meat in close to three years, this after many, many decades of regular consumption. Still here.
I did this as an experiment. Why? I can’t raise beef and hunting deer and pig in the forest where I live is challenging. However, the creek has fish in it and a whole ocean is a short walk away, full of seafood of all types.
We humans are fortunate. We’re omnivores. Do I miss fresh meat? Yep, I do.
Another tip; position one’s skill set and inventory to barter. One can trade for what they need and cannot provide themselves. This is a two-fold win. One, it denies the enemy our participation in their scheme. Two, it invigorates networks of individual humans who have personal contact and cooperate to survive. Even those of us with substantial survival skills can’t live a full life alone. Make that dynamic count.
Health is wealth. Best wishes for many years cancer-free.
And still the warmongers in DC and NATO continue to send money and weapons to the corrupt government of Ukraine. If they manage to start a nuclear war, inflation will be the least of our problems. NATO has come up with a 10-year plan to increase its (meaning US) involvement in Ukraine. This is insanity! We have to overwhelm the phone lines and email inboxes of our senators and reps demanding they stop this! US money and troops belong here at home protecting our own borders, as do our LNG and other petroleum products. Avoiding nuclear disaster is THE most important issue. All others pale in comparison.