Your going to begrudge someone $200
 

what about the slow nights when that same server makes half that or the manager cuts there shifts or just gets rid of them for people he knows , did they get any shifts during Covid or how about when there child gets sick and they have to stay home and not get paid.and how many older servers do you see around in there late 40’s or 50’s and the bartenders male or female who don’t have a certain look anymore (like being old or not attractive)and out they go, this happens everywhere .I eat out mosts night wherever I am and I’m friends with many service people from what I have observed and the stories I’ve been told of all the places I’ve lived there more people here that undertip not a lot but more then I would have thought, I’m saying this from my own observations and from servers and bartenders that are just casual friends but also from some woman I have dated here.So I’ll go on being a sucker and over tip these people that are getting rich while I struggle along on my fixed income ,? Oh poor me I live in the villages , I don’t have to work , gas went up, milk is almost $10 a quart , I can’t go to Publix , hmmm I know where I can cutback I’ll go to a nice restaurant and when the bill comes do I’ll leave 10% because in the old day I worked for a dollar an hour

Good to see that somebody gets just how fiscally irresponsible the Federal Reserve has been for many years running. Their actions were eventually going to hit the fan.

The cause and effects are not instantaneous, there is a significant lag effect that is now starting to come to fruition. Buckle up.

Plus, wait staff get NO benefits, especially health insurance. Also ,the $200 tips was occasionally ,but many nights it only a fraction of that. Been there.

Why would anyone find it
 

incredible that people still shop at Publix , maybe they like it there and I see young families as well as retirees shopping there maybe they like it for the well run store and the quantity of products and that if something isn’t there the manager will get it , or maybe they just don’t want to stick a quarter in the cart machine and come back to get it or bring there own germ filled bags that I think most use over and over , This thread seems to be all about everyone is suffering but it doesn’t feel that way to me , we’ve had inflation before and the prophets of doom banged the drum that this surly was close to the end well it wasn’t and it won’t be this time either

Governments do not set gas prices.
Demand, and how much comes out of the ground decides what a gallon costs.

98% of debt was on the books in January didn’t anyone think that rates would go up and that many had a pent up urge to spend and hit the road again or to just go to mall again or fly home to see relatives they hadn’t seen in 2 years or that business would want to try and get back some of the money they lost during Covid ????

If people are as old as they claim they are, they must know this time the inflation is different.

Keeping artificial crap interest rates on investments to push money into the over-leveraged, over valued market has caused this catastrophe. There is debt in this country that is out of control due to our government, right or left and not making this political.

Anyone with financial savvy can see what’s happened and going down won’t be pretty. I wonder if Nero is still fiddling?

Not totally correct. When govt takes action to restrict supply (pipeline project that was cancelled for example) prices will rise as a result.

I don't think many appreciate "productivity" that being the reason for our standard of living. Make Bill Gates and Steve Jobs the poster boys of the digital age, (sure many others have also contributed) the productivity of the computer, internet has made the use of goods and basic materials much more efficient as it has all manor of the use of labor itself, Good ol Bill and Steve made Amazon possible , delivering goods right to your door, several business entities bidding on your patronage, Bill , Steve and Bezos are fabulously wealthy but compared to what they have saved others they got "Chump Change" When you get promoted or find a better job you become a bigger part of the effort to make thing work efficiently, you become more PRODUCTIVE and earn more, paying people more for the same work is non productive, inflationary.

No one said it’s not a problem and there will be some problems ahead well I am the age I say I am and your welcome to see my birth certificate for $100 the blame that it’s all happening in a year is ridiculous , where we’re all the gloom and doom people last year and I remember all the tough times but I never remember a plague in my lifetime which called for more spending by both guys to help things get better , we should stop just thinking of ourselves and worry about those who come after us a little when my father was getting beat on Union picket lines all over USA in the 1930’s he was asked many times why he did it and it wasn’t helping him , he always said it was for the greater good not just for him but those who came after him

Sure supply and demand play a part, but the point is that our government cause prices to rise by the policies they take, it raises all costs of production and delivery as well as material assets such as oil in the ground

I think most of us folks give 20%, or at least I THOUGHT others did. We all know how servers earn their money. I don't base it ever on the level of service, I just think about standing on their feet and being polite to folks who often are not polite to them...but...that said........

I think the thrust of this thread is that some will have to cut back and eat at home if their fixed income is not going to keep up with current much higher prices in restaurants and everywhere.

I had my first job at 14 years of age....during the summer, working the lunch rush at a local diner. They only hired 3 of us that young because they had a huge lunch stampede to keep happy with quick service, so several of us got on for a 3 hour shift, M-F. $.25 per hour and tips.

NOONE ever considered it a "living wage" because it was a starter job. I took the hours they were "willing" to give me, and was grateful. Then, moved on to the next job and increased salary once I was old enough to drive before graduating HS. I did not get sent to college. Nope, back then, the attitude was that most women would get married and stay home with kids, so why bother.

Worked for a while realizing I wanted more in life, so put myself through school.

Bottom line here is that there are FAR more opportunities in this current atmosphere (COVID) than there were anytime in my memory because lots of folks don't WANT to work. If you choose to settle for a "entry" job, expect entry wages. If you go to grad school, expect to make significantly more. YOU DRIVE YOUR OWN TRAIN, SO SELECT THE COURSE YOU TAKE.

Each person has to decide for themselves....we have one of our kids that is a total minimalist. Wants for nothing, except enough to get by and all the free time to do what he enjoys doing outdoors at his disposal. His choice, but he is very happy with it. He NEEDS a job he enjoys that allows all the flexibility he has, so he is totally content (and totally self sufficient).

His sister is driven, constantly looking to upgrade that ring from brass, to gold. She is happy. She is able to meet the challenges she sets for herself goal wise both in timeline and satisfaction. Truth be told, her brother is wicked smart, but to him, free time and enjoying life is far more valuable than possessions. She is the exact opposite, always excited about her next accomplishment career wise.

We are just thrilled our kids are HAPPY and CONTENT. Too many people these days don't seem to know what they want, and find themselves very discontent with everything, regardless of income level. Really sad part is they don't want to take responsibility for their position in life when less than satisfied (which is the ONLY way they might be able to see the change they seem to want), so throw the victim card as the cause of all their problems. A goal without a plan is a dream.

And I remember 1981 when interest
 

rates were 16.63 and stayed there and we all survived, and I’m sure no one blamed Ronnie for it either