Price gouging as her first policy announcement? Really?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you deported all the illegals there would be more supply and less demand for everything.

There won’t be more supply. But there will be less demand, and less “free” money to spend on it.

It won’t increase overall supply of goods but at least I’ll be able to go to the store and find what I need is still on the shelf.

You make a good point about the money. The billions we waste on them…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Food and Grocery companies are not price gouging and aren't getting rich, the cost of these things have gone up. The only real price gouging is contractors doing work on houses of that is because of govt regulations subsidizing home repairs and renovations for energy savings. So it's short sighted to go after grocery stores when its deeper than that.

The food and grocery industry have been making huge profits. They started jacking prices up during the pandemic, initially due to supply chain issues, but as the supply chain issues were resolved, they continued jacking up prices and increasing their profit margins. They very much are gouging.

https://qz.com/supermarket-prices-grocery-food-inflation-pandemic-1851369826

Because consumers have too much money, dimwit. Companies keep raising prices yet demand is barely dented. Companies will stop raising prices once consumers stop buying yet consumers don’t stop buying. You fail to ask the fundamental question of why do consumers have so much stamina for these price increases? That’s because they’re too flush with cash due to the trillions of dollars the govt printed and spent with stimulus injections into the economy.


You think all those stimi checks, extensions of unemployment that were paying people more than they made at their jobs, student loan repayment moratoriums, rent moratoriums, and billions handed out to states to spend have no consequences and are free money? The piper must be paid and it comes in the form of inflation.

[Anonymous]

OP shows the intellectual bankruptcy of the GOP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP shows the intellectual bankruptcy of the GOP.

You cannot be serious. Almost every Dem on this board doesn’t understand basic economics. Try that line somewhere else.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Food and Grocery companies are not price gouging and aren't getting rich, the cost of these things have gone up. The only real price gouging is contractors doing work on houses of that is because of govt regulations subsidizing home repairs and renovations for energy savings. So it's short sighted to go after grocery stores when its deeper than that.

The food and grocery industry have been making huge profits. They started jacking prices up during the pandemic, initially due to supply chain issues, but as the supply chain issues were resolved, they continued jacking up prices and increasing their profit margins. They very much are gouging.

https://qz.com/supermarket-prices-grocery-food-inflation-pandemic-1851369826

Because consumers have too much money, dimwit. Companies keep raising prices yet demand is barely dented. Companies will stop raising prices once consumers stop buying yet consumers don’t stop buying. You fail to ask the fundamental question of why do consumers have so much stamina for these price increases? That’s because they’re too flush with cash due to the trillions of dollars the govt printed and spent with stimulus injections into the economy.


You think all those stimi checks, extensions of unemployment that were paying people more than they made at their jobs, student loan repayment moratoriums, rent moratoriums, and billions handed out to states to spend have no consequences and are free money? The piper must be paid and it comes in the form of inflation.

Ahh yes, the famously elastic demand for...*checks notes*...food.

The GOP, everybody: "If you don't like how expensive food is, have you tried not eating?"

[Anonymous]

Dumb proposal. Inflation has been caused by (i) supply constraints arising from overzealous COVID-19 restrictions (largely a function of Democratic policy) and (ii) excessive government spending over a sustained period, including as a result of the bills passed over the past few years at the behest of the Biden administration.

It's not a function of mass price-gouging, and efforts to impose price controls are more likely to create shortages or further inflation than they are to lower prices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My opinion: this is a straw man argument to deflect attention and commentary about inflation and gas prices under the Biden/Harris administration.

Uh, she is trying to address the costs of things in a way that a government can.

Use the power of the government to negotiate the prices of certain drugs for medicare recipients
Provide block grants to increase the supply of housing while also providing incentives for home ownership
Incentivize competition to help reduce food prices.

And gas prices? It is cheap relative to historic costs. I can get it for under $3.50 a gallon in DC. On the eastern shore, it is closer to $3.25.

The only reason it was at $2.00 in 2020 was because the economy ground to a halt and the refineries couldn't give it away.

You know what the government could do that would be far more helpful? Rein in the out of control spending that has been going on for several years, and pursue a more balanced budget. That would do a ton to reduce or control inflation. Not these BS ideas that the Harris campaign is pretending will do anything. It's foolhardy to think these are anything beyond more nice sounding, but actually ineffective or even harmful policies like the Democrats so often like to propose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, this was not a good move. WaPo featuring her backers saying that free enterprise is dead is not going to help win the middle.

And they will look dumb when her actual proposal still allows the market to set prices unless they want to increase them by massive amounts

Ok, it’s not good that people who support her look dumb.

Can you share and specifically quote who is saying "free enterprise is dead"?

“Harris has made a set of policy choices over the last several weeks that make it clear that the Democratic Party is committed to a pro working-family agenda. The days of ‘What’s good for free enterprise is good for America’ are over,” said Felicia Wong, president of Roosevelt Forward, a left-leaning think tank.”

Stupid. Free enterprise is good for America. Market failures are bad, but those can be addressed through smart policy. Attacking free enterprise is a really bad look and I’m hoping this point of view doesn’t permeate the actual campaign.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's the thing. I don't care anything about this, but when people are constantly complaining about prices and inflation, and then she tries to propose a solution, it's heresy.

What do you want from her exactly? Trump hasn't said 2 words beyond, prices are up. Ok.

So, if someone proposes a "solution," you just have to accept it. Of course not. You should evaluate whether the solution is effective, misplaced or even a counterproductive idea. Here, it is a counterproductive idea, and should be rejected in favor of a better solution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, this was not a good move. WaPo featuring her backers saying that free enterprise is dead is not going to help win the middle.

And they will look dumb when her actual proposal still allows the market to set prices unless they want to increase them by massive amounts

Ok, it’s not good that people who support her look dumb.

Can you share and specifically quote who is saying "free enterprise is dead"?

“Harris has made a set of policy choices over the last several weeks that make it clear that the Democratic Party is committed to a pro working-family agenda. The days of ‘What’s good for free enterprise is good for America’ are over,” said Felicia Wong, president of Roosevelt Forward, a left-leaning think tank.”

Stupid. Free enterprise is good for America. Market failures are bad, but those can be addressed through smart policy. Attacking free enterprise is a really bad look and I’m hoping this point of view doesn’t permeate the actual campaign.

That's....not saying "free enterprise is dead" it's saying free enterprise isn't the only factor in families' well being.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's the thing. I don't care anything about this, but when people are constantly complaining about prices and inflation, and then she tries to propose a solution, it's heresy.

What do you want from her exactly? Trump hasn't said 2 words beyond, prices are up. Ok.

So, if someone proposes a "solution," you just have to accept it. Of course not. You should evaluate whether the solution is effective, misplaced or even a counterproductive idea. Here, it is a counterproductive idea, and should be rejected in favor of a better solution.

We don't even know what the idea is yet. We know they have some idea that they want to prohibit companies from raising prices by more than a certain amount. What that will be we don't know. Maybe it will be 5% which I can definitely see being counter productive. Maybe it will 100% which seems reasonable and probably won't impact prices very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My opinion: this is a straw man argument to deflect attention and commentary about inflation and gas prices under the Biden/Harris administration.

Uh, she is trying to address the costs of things in a way that a government can.

Use the power of the government to negotiate the prices of certain drugs for medicare recipients
Provide block grants to increase the supply of housing while also providing incentives for home ownership
Incentivize competition to help reduce food prices.

And gas prices? It is cheap relative to historic costs. I can get it for under $3.50 a gallon in DC. On the eastern shore, it is closer to $3.25.

The only reason it was at $2.00 in 2020 was because the economy ground to a halt and the refineries couldn't give it away.

You know what the government could do that would be far more helpful? Rein in the out of control spending that has been going on for several years, and pursue a more balanced budget. That would do a ton to reduce or control inflation. Not these BS ideas that the Harris campaign is pretending will do anything. It's foolhardy to think these are anything beyond more nice sounding, but actually ineffective or even harmful policies like the Democrats so often like to propose.

Democrats are the ones who rein in out of control spending you dunce. W Bush and Trump are the #2 and #3 deficit spenders in US history. The only President who added more to the national debt than Trump and Bush was Abraham Lincoln, and I think he gets a pass considering the whole Civil War thing going on...

https://www.propublica.org/article/national-debt-trump

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Food and Grocery companies are not price gouging and aren't getting rich, the cost of these things have gone up. The only real price gouging is contractors doing work on houses of that is because of govt regulations subsidizing home repairs and renovations for energy savings. So it's short sighted to go after grocery stores when its deeper than that.

The food and grocery industry have been making huge profits. They started jacking prices up during the pandemic, initially due to supply chain issues, but as the supply chain issues were resolved, they continued jacking up prices and increasing their profit margins. They very much are gouging.

https://qz.com/supermarket-prices-grocery-food-inflation-pandemic-1851369826

Because consumers have too much money, dimwit. Companies keep raising prices yet demand is barely dented. Companies will stop raising prices once consumers stop buying yet consumers don’t stop buying. You fail to ask the fundamental question of why do consumers have so much stamina for these price increases? That’s because they’re too flush with cash due to the trillions of dollars the govt printed and spent with stimulus injections into the economy.


You think all those stimi checks, extensions of unemployment that were paying people more than they made at their jobs, student loan repayment moratoriums, rent moratoriums, and billions handed out to states to spend have no consequences and are free money? The piper must be paid and it comes in the form of inflation.

WTF is wrong with you? Is your brain stunted? Are you stuck in 2020? All of those things you're talking about are from the pandemic. Biden ENDED the Trump "stimmy checks" and most of those other things ended as well, A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK, I think she just put her first foot wrong. Prices were up 1% on groceries this past year. This is bizarre - brings back memories of ‘70s price controls.

What do you think?

Perception is reality, so to all the people who are struggling to afford groceries because of corporate greed, this may play well no matter what the price data says.