Originally Posted by
Malcolm McLeod
No mention of greed, but we can all find our own confirmation bias - if we look hard enough.
Cost-push inflation tends to have a ratcheting effect baked in unless there is active pressure to reduce prices when/if costs go back down. Whether you call it "greed" or "maximization of shareholder value" is in the eye of the beholder.
There's also the effect of timing on volatile cost components. My favorite example is how gasoline prices go up almost immediately when the price of crude goes up (i.e. at the front end of a rather long supply chain) and only go down when the cost of refined/delivered gas goes down (i.e. at the back end of the same supply chain). There is a lot of profit under the curve in that time lag...again, you don't have to call it greed if you don't want to, but it certainly exists.
Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
"Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.