The Increases Never End!

Well life has just got harder her on the rock. It seems the price of everything has sky rocketed over the past few weeks. The increasing price of gas become a norm now, even with the whopping increase to US$88 per barrel. It seems going to th pumps on a Thursday mooring the average driver expects to see an increase of JM$1.00 on the per litre price for gas. So despite feeling the crunch in ones pocket, the average Jamaican seems to be getting accustomed to the ever increasing gas prices. But this is not the only tribulation that was in mid air, pouncing on the pockets of Jamaicans!

The news broke a few weeks ago, when the Jamaica Flour Mills announced that the cost for flour will be increased by thirty percent (30%)! This increase in one single item might not look so drastic at first thought, but when you consider the rippling effects that this increase will inevitably have on all baked products that uses flour then the ominous picture reveals itself. Now Jamaican will have to dig deeper into their pockets for the simple necessary baked products like bread, biscuits, crackers. This ripple effect is also compounded by the many greedy resellers of flour who see this as an opportunity to fatten their pockets by stuffing their shelves with excessive increases in the price of flour. It has been reported that some store owners have already begun to practice price gouging.

But this is not the only pocket crunching food woe, it has also been reported that the prices of ground provisions have also gone up! Another bite into the ever diminishing pocket. I share the same sentiments of a consumer who the the Jamaica Gleaner quoted as saying, "Every month when I go to the supermarket the prices go up. Now I just buy the basic items, certain things like fruits and cereal I cannot afford...", as I feel the same way when I see the prices of goods on the shelves every time I go to the supermarket.

The unfortunate thing is that while everything seem to be on a rapid increase except my salary! Instead it seems to be on a downward spiral with the ever devaluing Jamaican Dollar! I guess I just have to ban mi belly learn to live with less and try to think positive, because with all the increases in the price of gas, utilities and food, compounded by negligible salary increases I can still afford to gaze on things like these...

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