By Kevin M
The cost of living has been rising relentlessly for decades, and while we tend to notice it less during the good times, it all hits home hard in times like these. Forget the official numbers that deny the existence of inflation, if you’re middle class, working class, a struggling business owner, and especially if you’re retired, you know the real story from the trenches on the front lines.
Sure food costs have been bouncing up and down in a range, and gas prices are about 40% lower than they were a year ago at this time, but what about everything else? What about property taxes, utilities, health insurance and all things education related? What about movie tickets, theme parks, medical co-pays and car repairs? Our auto insurance just increased by more than 20% because of state mandated add-ons to cover uninsured motorists. 20%–in 2009—how’s that for timing?
