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Comment by paxys | Hacker News Reader

Are layoffs becoming an annual thing in tech now? Last year there was the "macroeconomic conditions" excuse that every company used. How are they justifying this round?

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I think its going to be a "revenues were up while costs were down - so we will continue this trajectory until it breaks" strategy.

It’s still macro.

The media has been peddling the idea that things are rosy economically but that’s not people are seeing and experiencing. December’s CPI is through the roof. The economy has been soft and with ZIRP gone, things are adjusting accordingly.

We’re now paying the piper —a little.

The media is peddling the opposite, that “things are still tough.” The numbers are clear: December CPI was hardly “through the roof”, wages ant anll levels are still growing faster than inflation and consumer behavior (spending) is robust. Most people are acting as if the economy is strong.

This is the USA: poor people continue to suffer and governments at the state and federal level are increasing their suffering, especially kids. That is also getting reported.

It’s like the crime stats: people believe crime is raging “elsewhere though not here” even though trends are down mostly across the board.

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf

I find it really hard to believe crime is down across the board. I don't even have to look it up to know that isn't true in cities. Sounds like something a liberal politician would say, since it's bullshit.

Walgreens and such would not be pulling up stakes in places if it wasn't for rampant shoplifting. Other stores would not be pulling back on self-checkout either.

Since police are mainly following up on serious crime, people ease up on reporting lesser crimes like break-ins, window smashing, porch thievery, etc. And then politicians point to statistics --which given dampened reporting, means they "look" okay, but on the street it's not okay.

Never in my life have I see so much open selling of "not for individual sale, only for sale at $retail_store" on the sidewalks.

Inflation ticked up to 3.4%, it's not through the roof. Real wages are up. The economy is absolutely doing very well for some people.

Are you guys and gals checking your grocery receipts? Eggs have doubled over the last two years. Milk, meats, fruits and veggies... I can't think of much that hasn't gone up at a higher rate than before the pandemic.

I applaud the Fed for hiking interest rates, free money can't go on forever if you want to avoid the fate of Argentina, but c'mon, the economy is not good. It's not bad, but it's not good.

Laid off people and those fired are finding it harder to find equivalent employment like they did before.

I would bet a good roll or money that if the opposition were in the whitehouse, we'd be hearing about how shitty the economy is right now. It may not be shitty but it's not rosy like they pretend it is.

This is often brought up and I'm fully willing to be shown that I'm out of touch, but where are people buying these supposed "expensive" eggs and groceries? I'll literally share my last grocery receipt (admittedly smaller due to already having most ingredients):

- Chicken thighs $6.24

- Ground beef $5.97

- Feminine items $9.97

- Bell pepper $0.82

- Lettuce $1.77

- Celery $2.98

- Shrimp $7.92

- Tortilla soup $3.82

- Yogurt (single) $0.64

- Diced tomatoes $0.96

- Black beans $0.82

- Yogurt (pack) $2.47

- Andouille sausage $3.94

Total: $51.24

Sampling from other receipts I've got milk at $3.33, lunchmeat $4.46, my last gas bill was $18.65 to fill up. So far in January, shopping at Walmart and with a crockpot, I've been able to feed myself and my girlfriend for around $139. Fair disclaimer I live in a LCOL metro but was it ever really cheaper than this?

Those prices are really good. Admittedly, I don't shop at big box stores or warehouse supermarkets. But I do usually go to the same chain or interweekly I will go to a local grocery store (which have higher markups), never the less, the same basket of goods has gone up approx 25 to 30% over the last couple of years, in my experience. The most affected are baked goods, coffee beans, eggs, milk, juices, meats & seafood but also has showed up in things like flowers and herb plants.

I live in a high COL area and groceries are expensive, even at the stores that have had traditionally lower price points. Also, as long as I can afford it, I'm not eating ground beef that costs $5.97 or eggs with yolks that are barely a pale yellow in color. The quality of the your food matters a lot.

> - Bell pepper $0.82

Different parts of the country. Bell peppers are $2-$3 each at all the stores near me.

The cheap eggs are $5 a carton, the eggs that taste good are now at $10 a dozen, which is 2x what they were a year ago.

Datapoint, at Costco in Texas Kirkland eggs are still $5 for a 24 carton.

A gallon of organic milk in the midwest is $7.

A pound of skirt steak is $17.

I just bought skirt steak for $7 a pound at my local mexican grocer in Chicago. Not even a sale, that's just the normal price.

Eggs are now $2 a dozen at walmart.

“Last two years” is a different metric than “December”isn’t it?

They were touting easing inflation, but it came in hotter than they hoped for. They also pretend food hasn't gone up. People in this thread argue it hasn't gone up much. It has gone up --and that does not include the shrinkflation aspect.

They're fooling themselves. Come election time, people will let them know how they feel, one way or the other -Carville was astute.

3.4% in what timeframe? Your number is meaningless without timeframe...

inflation is always measured year over year if the timeframe isnt specified

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