The doubles conspiracy

The most hilarious analysis of the doubles price rise in Trinidad. Dennis Allen is a master of oletalk!

" Last week, on APR4, 2008, I received the following message from a crew of brederin who usually debate such matters of national import…

Subject: Still want to buy doubles for $4 and $5? ...Feel FREE !!!!!
Date: Fri, 4 Apr 2008 14:36:05 +0000

> Hello Friends,
> As a worker at ***, I will give you a small insight to what I would call
> "Highway Robbery"
>
> The flour that most doubles vendors use (45kg) has been increased by
> $60.00. Do you know how many doubles can be produced from a 45kg of flour?
>
> Let me tell you. 1,200 doubles, yes twelve hundred and some good doubles
> vendors can get 1,500.
>
> So let's use 1,200. If your 45kg bag of flour has been increased by
> $60.00..Do the math.
>
> OK OK, let me do it for you..Your doubles went up by 5 cents.
>
> Still want to buy doubles for $4 and $5? ...Feel FREE !!!!!

To which I promptly dispatched the following response:

i think its important to differentiate between a BARRA and a DOUBLES...as that would have a significant effect on the maths presented here...
is it that 1200-1500 BARRA can be made with a sack of flour? or that amount of DOUBLES [2X barra?]
and what is the average square inch surface area of the individual barra mentioned by this "analyst"? a morvant doubles has a noticeably larger square barra-age than a typical roundabout doubles--even though they are geographically identical to most casual doubles consumers...
and what about debe doubles? fluffier than most north doubles, thus implying the addition of a rising agent, the cost of which has not been factored into this equation...

Read the rest HERE!

Rising Food prices of concern to CARICOM leaders

Business: News in the Caribbean - Caribbean360.com

there's been a lot of wailing about inflation and rising food prices, especially here in Trinidad and Tobago. One thing that I keep hearing, that never fails to astound me is "Milk is too expensive. The Government should lower the price"
So - does this mean that the government has a milk farm, and a processing plant, distribution facilities, and that they are selling the milk from a Government store? That's the only way that they can really lower prices - and since that isn't so... well - what can the Government do? There are already few or no taxes and duties on imported milk, for example. But if there is a worldwide shortage of milk, (as there is) and the price goes up, how can the T&T Government "reduce" the price?
I think that many of my conterraneos are woefully ignorant of the realities of a global capitalist society.
But this article does a good job of explaining the external forces that are pushing food prices up.