Consumers are being screwed again

 These days it is not easy to stay calm and not get upset about things. I got gas for my car today and realized again how the big oil companies are screwing us and playing games. Yesterday the price of regular gas fell at some stations in Winnipeg to $1.069 per liter. This morning when we drove by the Co-Op in Selkirk the price there was posted as $1.119. When I went to get gas in the afternoon I paid $1.159 per liter. It cost me $1.00 more to fill up. Why would the price go up 4 cents in just a few hours? The Petro station was still selling for $1.119. I should have filled up there

Then we went to the Liqueur Commission and bought a bottle of dark rum. My wife needs it in her baking for Christmas. We bought the cheapest bottle available. We paid $27.00 for a 750 ml bottle. That is outrageous! There is no reason for alcohol to be this expensive. When we go on holidays to Cuba, Dominican Republic, or Mexico, we always bring back our booze. And it is so much cheaper. Even buying in the US we still save a bundle of money. The problem is you are only allowed a 40 oz bottle per person. I don’t drink much hard liqueur. Once in a while we eat oysters or crabmeat; that’s the only time I drink a glass of ginger ale with whiskey. A bottle of whiskey lasts me a long time. I like my beer, but I refuse to buy the higher priced ones. In my opinion, there is no difference between a high priced beer and the cheaper priced one. Some people believe there is. I firmly believe that by buying higher priced beers one pays for the name or popularity. What would make an ‘Original Lager’ or ‘Pilsner’ more expensive than an Amber Ale, for instance?

I learned a long time ago in School how merchandizing works. People always think they get a better product when they pay more. How wrong they are! They’re getting screwed.

Anyway, I thought to have a monopoly is a crime. Price-fixing is a crime. So why are all the gasoline prices the same? Why is there no competition selling of alcohol? The government controls the supply and sales of alcohol. That’s why. Prices are fixed and excessive. That is called a monopoly. A crime. It is the same with the gasoline prices. Controlled and fixed by the oil companies. A crime. But we consumers are helpless and have to endure being screwed. There is nothing we can do except for stopping to buy these products. I make my own beer and wine, but I can’t make hard liqueur and I can’t make gasoline. Too bad. If I could I would.

Why are milk prices the same in every store? Monolopy.

When we were in Germany a few years ago I was amazed at the low price of beer, wine, and other liqueurs. You can buy them in practically every store, not just in controlled Liqueur Commissions. It works there, why not here?

Yes, it is not easy to stay calm when I’m getting screwed at every turn. Sigh!!

I feel so much better now.