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The new face of hunger
“We are the canary in the mine,” says Josette Sheeran, the head of the UN's World Food Programme, the largest distributor of food aid. Usually, a food crisis is clear and localised. The harvest fails, often because of war or strife, and the burden in the affected region falls heavily on the poorest. This crisis is different. It is occurring in many countries simultaneously, the first time that has happened since the early 1970s. And it is affecting people not usually hit by famines. “For the middle classes,” says Ms Sheeran, “it means cutting out medical care. For those on $2 a day, it means cutting out meat and taking the children out of school. For those on $1 a day, it means cutting out meat and vegetables and eating only cereals. And for those on 50 cents a day, it means total disaster.” The poorest are selling their animals, tools, the tin roof over their heads—making recovery, when it comes, much harder.
Hotels: Occupancy Rate Increased 2.8% Year-over-year
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From STR: U.S. hotel results for week ending 13 April
Helped by the total solar eclipse, U.S. hotel performance increased from
the previous week, according...
9 hours ago
10 comments:
Stag,
Great article. I wish it mentioned all the dollars we created though. I'm really getting sick of people blaming the expanding asian middle class for inflation.
When short term bonds that used to yield 5% (like mine) start rolling over and folks are faced with either spending or investing at negative real yields.... let's just say the money might not go where the fed HOPES.
It's time for the fed to disapppoint the stock market (and leveraged speculators) imo.
MAB,
When short term bonds that used to yield 5% (like mine) start rolling over and folks are faced with either spending or investing at negative real yields.... let's just say the money might not go where the fed HOPES.
Very little of the money is going where the fed HOPES these days. I doubt the stimulus checks will be the exception.
MAB,
I stand corrected.
http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/showthread.php?t=99305
Sigh.
That Disney Land post is too much. How about that guy from Oregon who is driving down in the old family truckster. His rebate should just about cover the gas. Let's just hope he remembers to unleash the dog from the bumper.
stag,
great post. I don't think inflation is getting enough coverage. I find myself alarmed at the inflation I'm seeing at the supermarket but my heart goes out to the poor folks around the world who are struggling just to survive. Was just reading about Vietnam and how they have 30% food inflation.
Those rebate checks should be just enough to pay the the cost of inflation on food and fuel. It's not going to make a dent.
sad, very sad.
PDX
The guy from Oregon is from Eugene, nouveau hippie land. Somehow, I think the truckster is a bit different than you might think ;)
And, FYI, figure out a way to stock up on meat over the summer. Farmers are starting to dump livestock as hay prices are also rising. One of the big chicken producers is already announcing cutbacks. I'm hanging onto my goats for now, just in case there's a shortage of goats in the future.
Watch meat come June or so. Feed is skyrocketing and transport as well. Kill'em and dump'em followed by scarcity.
If all these other countries are preparing to "steal" our food with the dollars they've accumulated does that mean the CIA will have to release another plague worse than AIDS?
MAB,
What struck me was the excitement over getting freshly printed money. As if it truly is just free. Nobody has to pay? Sigh.
PDX,
Printing money to fight inflation is par for the course these days. Stay the course. Mission accomplished. Blah blah blah. It truly saddens me how far off the track we've wandered.
Teri & Rob Dawg,
I'm 100% in agreement with both of you. We're taking advantage of a meat sale at Safeway this week. London Broil is $1.99 a pound. My girlfriend tried to buy 15 pounds today but didn't like the look of the meat. The butcher said fresh meat was coming in tomorrow and he'd set it aside for us.
We're not big beef eaters generally but we have a freezer and a food saver. It will last us at least a year. I guess that's one last fling into the abyss.
We also have a LOT of frozen chicken. That we do tend to eat a lot of.
Note to self: hoard more chicken at Costco. Give Bernanke what he apparently wants.
For those who stock up on meat: don't forget to get backup generators for your freezer, at least if you're in California (rolling blackouts and all that). I know in Texas, severe weather (ice storm or tornado) can bring power outages, too, so be prepared to protect your investment....
DannyHSDad,
I really should do that. Our power outage season is in the winter up here in the Pacific Northwest (windstorms). I had to stick some dry ice in there this winter and was fortunate that the power was only out half a day. It can get worse than that.
On the other hand, I generally run my freezer a bit light during the wind season so I have less to lose.
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