I’m so old I remember when a half gallon of ice cream was 2 full quartsPosted on 03/05/2018 7:14:26 AM PST by NOBO2012
Yes it’s Monday Moanin.’ Also known in the trade as “what’s bothering you” it means that it’s time to let your inner-bitch out. Since I’ve been bitching about politics for over a decade I’m focusing on something that’s only ancillary to politics today: the long, slow march to the downsizing of America. I’m talking products here, the size reductions that require heirloom recipes to be recalibrated to accommodate for the new 14.75 ounce cans that used to hold 16.5 ounces and the 12 ounce boxes that once housed a full pound of pasta. I guess manufacturers thought we wouldn’t notice. And we didn’t… at first. But when they did it to the two most essential food groups in the American diet, coffee and ice cream, we all snapped to attention.
Yes children, a one pound can of coffee once weighed 16 ounces, not 11.5.
And 5# of sugar once weighed a full pound more than the new, sleeker, 4 pound bag. And a bag containing one whole pound of chips? You wish!
What else has shrunk since the golden age of Obama? More like what hasn’t? Hot dogs, mustard, catsup, packaged cheese, cereal, mayonnaise, jam, pasta, canned tuna fish, peanut butter, paper towels, toilet paper, pills, kleenex, soap. All have been on the chopping block. Even plastic bags are thinner now – and half the time they won’t even “zip” anymore let alone lock.
I blame this insidious form of inflation on Obama, who picked up Jimmy Carter’s mantle of winning the energy crisis by using less and conserving more and dragged it to the “pie is only so big” finish line. During this time frame both he and manufacturers tried to convince us that less really was more.
They may be Giants, but they are not American giants. Enough with the downsizing.
Posted from: MOTUS A.D.
I thought this was a thread about one of my favorite bands.
Why hasn’t Mueller indicted the Podesta Bros. yet?
I know I am showing my age but I remember decades ago there was a sugar shortage and candy bars got smaller and at the same time the price went up. The sugar crisis went away a year or so later but the candy bars did nor revert to the previous larger size and instead of the price going back down it just continued to go up. I remember the same situation with a coffee shortage years later with similar results. I became convinced that these “shortages” are manufactored crisis just to justify price gouging.
One good thing I guess is that we will never have to worry about an impending crap crisis as long as democrats and their media sycophants are alive to spew an unending amount of it.
They’re not going to indict friends.
Cereal boxes get thinner and thinner....as you say they think we don’t notice.
Not going to blame Obama for a “pound” of coffee becoming 10.5 ounces. That was happening long before Obama.
I’m now a geezer and I tell students about the old days when candy bars cost a nickel and were roughly twice the size of today’s. But then I explain that nickels were harder for me to come by than dollars are for them. And then I finish the mini lesson by explaining that they can look at it two ways. Either the cost of candy has gone up, or (and this is the biggie) the value of the dollar has gone down.
Another thing to consider is the use of different measures by different manufacturers of similar products to further confuse the consumer by making it difficult to compare prices. They are raising prices anyway,so why can’t they just be honest about it & stick with standard measures?
I bought a case of pop the other day and it was only 20 cans instead of 24.
“Either the cost of candy has gone up, or (and this is the biggie) the value of the dollar has gone down.”
The first cars I purchased in my early twenties (brand new) cost around $2000. I’d say the value of the dollar has gone way down. Why is that a given that we don’t question? What really causes inflation?....its not a good economy as we are told.
They Might Be Giants carries the banner of socialism and anti-Americanism.
I loved them too, until I found out.
What really causes inflation?....
——
I’m not an economist (nor do I play one on TV), but one reason in my mind is when we (the US) took the silver out of our coins. It used to be that the majority of a quarter’s value was the value of the silver it contained. This tended to limit how much inflation could cheapen our money.
Now I understand that inflation was going on, even with silver in our money. I can remember my parents complaining in the 50s about being able to carry $10 worth of groceries in just one bag.
The fact is we tend to view the dollar as a unit of measure like a foot or a pound, but it really isn’t. It is nearly always shrinking, usually at such a slow rate that we don’t notice the shrinking on a day to day basis, but over a couple of decades, you can really see it.
Great article post.
Yes, we noticed... it includes household necessities, like bothroom cleaner. "Scrubbing bubbles" used to be 25 oz, now 20, in a same height can, only skinnier, and 10% pricier.
I've concluded that manufacturers have adopted the "speed of light" physical "mass" constant law... As time goes on, the contents decreases, and the price increases, until ultimately the contents will decrease to zero, and the price will increase to "your total net worth..."
As an interesting aside, if anyone is aware of a web site that tracks this magic, a link would be greatly appreciated.
And taxes must increase to cover elected criminals and bureaucrat costs...
I Rembrandt also. Government getting away with inflationary policy. And this damn policy is really skewing my retirement plans.
The one that REALLY ticked me off was Claussen pickle halves 64 Fl Oz jar. A few months ago it went from $5.75 to $6.48 (Wal-Mart). I notice now that the pickles have a 1” gap between the ends and the bottom on the jar. They used to reach all the way to the bottom.
Another trick is to have all the outside ones reach the bottom and put the shorter ones in the center. People look at me when I lift the jars up and check for the shorts.
Since it is measured in fluid ounces, they can just shorten the pickle, add more brine and still be legal.
Tuna is the one that annoys me the most.
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Surprised no one has mentioned the width of a roll of toilet paper. Especially if you have an older house and can see how wide the tissue holder is.
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