Stop Buying
I listened to a fascinating interview yesterday with Wolf Richter, founder and publisher of “Wolf Street,” where he opines on a variety of economic topics. The interview was hosted by Adam Taggart, who used to be one of the hosts of another favorite podcast of mine, Peak Prosperity. He split off Peak Prosperity to found his own company, called Wealthion. (FWIW, I hate that name, because wealth consists of more than money, but I like Taggart’s podcasting style, so I am subscribed to the feed.)
The title of the episode was The “Everything Shortage”: Why Is Everything so Expensive & Out of Stock? I thought I had a good grasp on most of the principles underlying the current shortage, but about thirty minutes in, Wolf said something that made me think hard about what’s going on. Obviously, the “just in time” inventory system is broken. He says that what needs to happen is that consumers need to STOP BUYING—stop buying toilet paper, stop buying beans and rice, stop buying anything and everything and hoarding it. He believes that only when demand slows down will the system catch its breath enough to recover.
Of course, the federal government, in its infinite wisdom (sarcasm alert), is doing everything it can to juice the system and entice consumers into spending via endless stimulus and money printing.
“Hi, we’re the federal government and we’re here to help. We just broke your leg and now we would like to sell you this overpriced, badly-designed crutch. You’re welcome.”
It’s human nature, as well, to panic when it appears resources might be or become scarce. Wolf gave the example—germane to us, certainly—of the home builder who orders fasteners from his supplier only to be told that they are out of stock and won’t be available for three months. Concerned that the fasteners might continue to be scarce indefinitely, the home builder orders EXTRA fasteners to be delivered in three months, putting further stress on the system.
Of course, the federal government might inadvertently speed demand destruction as its rampant money printing causes runaway inflation. People might stop buying because they can’t afford to. I hold my breath every time I go through the checkout line at the grocery store. Food is far more expensive today than it was a year ago. We’re in a position to absorb those increases—painful though they are—but what about the people who can’t? I’ve seen requests in my homesteading groups for recipes for baby formula, because it’s scarce and expensive in some areas. Baby formula.
I thought about all of that as I did my shopping yesterday. And I’ll admit, I did the very thing Wolf said not to do—I bought. I bought four yards of Insul-Bright because I need it for making inventory for next year’s sale and I remember what it was like when I couldn’t find black Kona last year. (I’ve been buying black Kona any time I see it on a remnant rack, so I have a decent supply now.) I’d also thought about stocking up on batting, because if cotton prices go up, batting prices will, too.
My problems are trivial issues in the grand scheme of things, and my not buying things is not, singlehandedly, going to help the system recover. It’s a hard habit to break, though. Having backup supplies has been a way of life with me since we moved to Montana 28 years ago. One does not just run to the grocery store 20 miles away for something at midnight in January when it’s snowing. I’ve gotten us through some lean times with what I’ve had on hand.
These are issues to ponder.
There is some quilt content to this post. and it’s related. Although I bought Insul-Bright, I did not buy quilt batting. I have a 25-yard roll of it in the closet, purchased for a rainy day. I pulled that roll out yesterday afternoon and used it to baste this quilt.
This is a jelly roll race quilt that I did when I was in Alaska in May. I took one of my little Janome sewing machines with me in a carry-on case and left it at DD#1’s house. That way, if I’m there and something needs sewn or I want to work on a project, I’ll have a machine. This is a jelly roll from the Cultivate Kindness fabric line, designed by Deb Strain. I love the bright colors.
Two tops are now basted and waiting to be quilted. I may get a couple more ready by this weekend.