This one lands hard because it’s structural, not rhetorical. You didn’t argue morals—you mapped mechanics. Once you see rent and groceries collapsing into the same ownership ceiling, “inflation” really does fall apart as an explanation. The kitchen insight is especially sharp; that was the last household buffer, and its removal makes the rest of the extraction almost automatic. This isn’t outrage bait—it’s an X-ray.
That’s what I call a well written compliment. Perfect blend of synopsis and positivity. If you’re not a paid writer, you should be. I completely concur.
Everything you write always exists alongside our surroundings at this specific moment in our lives. Every topic is highly relatable and easy to understand. 🤗🙏🏻
Shop from local small businesses. Cook at home. Combine purchasing power with neighbours if you live alone.
Buy eggs and vegetables from the farm gate if you can. If you do not drive or don’t have that option find a food co op and help out in return for a free delivery. Grow your own herbs and salads. Don’t say no to those $5 boxes of fruit that are getting soft. (It can be used immediately, puréed, cooked or frozen.) Consider “ethnic” foods. (For instance I buy 3 kg locally made feta cheese which comes in brine for $40 . I pack half in jars of olive oil and herbs and use the rest fresh, a little most days, plus I have plenty to give away. This lasts me six months. )Invest in good quality olive oil. Eat fresh. Stay well! Escape the cartels behind the big supermarkets (and never buy from Amazon!) Best for the holidays 💚🌺🇦🇺
I think you’re doing important work. I wish you success; I want to encourage you, and I offer this in a constructive spirit—I like the post, but I find a lot of it confusingly ambiguous and hard to follow.
For example, in the “Sanitation Shift” you seem to be talking about meatpacking plants. Is that right? If so, why not just come out and say it? The word “sanitation” doesn’t lead in that particular direction. Is it being used metaphorically? If so, what exactly is being cleaned up? It’s not at all clear. Then, I have to read between the lines about industrial processing and the equipment names to figure out what’s going on. That’s reader energy spent, and when too much is depleted, I stop reading.
Another problem for me is how there isn’t any direct evidence in the “evidence lockers,” so it’s hard for me to envision the scope of the problem. If you actually are writing about child labor in meatpacking plants, that’s a big legal deal. But what specific plants and companies are you talking about? How many children, what ages, and where? Is any of this a matter of public record—news articles, police reports, lawsuits etc.? Without that information, it’s hard to understand what’s going on, how big it is, who’s responsible, etc.
The same goes for the explanation about the grocer-landlord nexus. Are you saying that there are specific companies (Black Rock? Vanguard?) that own, for example, both Safeway and some particular apartment complex conglomeration? Or are you saying that a particular bank, or labor union, or NGO is paying certain people? It would really help to read that level of specificity. Otherwise, it’s like being told that, say, there are murderers who are also dentists. How many? Where? Who? I’d like to know before my next annual checkup!
Again, this criticism is meant entirely constructively. Your posts would, in my estimation, be even more compelling with more concrete examples and detailed explanations. Thanks for considering my opinion!
Appreciate the constructive push. You’re analyzing this through the lens of journalism—asking for specific names, dates, and statutes upfront. That’s a valid frame, but it isn't what this project is doing.
This is forensic noir. The goal isn't to feed the reader a finished conclusion; it's to map the mechanics of the system so you can see the shape of the prison yourself. The ambiguity is intentional. It’s designed to provoke the exact instinct you’re feeling: the urge to dig, to verify, and to ask 'who?'
That said, the evidence lockers aren't just metaphors. If you scroll to the 'Receipts' section at the bottom, there is a link to the primary source dossiers. The court filings regarding child labor in sanitation (PSSI/Packers), the consolidation maps, and the ownership charts are all in there.
The gun is loaded. I just need you to pull the trigger.
Thanks for the clarification. I missed the receipts section in my distraction—maybe highlight their presence?
The question of how best to inform and persuade readers is an interesting one to me. As readers, we all have our resistant cognitive biases and our mental load limits, balanced against our desire to belong, be entertained, and be confirmed in our beliefs. Maybe explicitly framing deliberate ambiguity as such could add to its effectiveness—or if you’ve already done that, I must have missed it.
The large corporation i work for is adding 1million in PROFIT every year, I see the certificates in the office.
That large corporation was recently bought by none other than KROGER.
I am fortunate, hav8jg vwry few obligte expenses, yet I can barely afford to buy (actual, healthy) food from the place I give all my energy to.
And saving ANYTHING at all is almost impossible, again by design.
Its way too obvious to ignore, at least for people who need to work for a living, like I do.
And despite those millions IN PROFIT from a SINGLE STORE, and my slightly elevated position, working full-time, I'll get 2 50-cent raises if im lucky, and a pathetically small 'profit sharing' check 2x per year. Each profit-sharing payment comes out to be a little less than a paycheck, for someone in my position and
hours.
A non-manager gets less.
I dont think part-timers even get 'profit-sharing benefits' at all.
So you’re saying they own the homes and the food without our input or influence or choices but we have ability to own home and I buy a cow and have it butchered. I think my age and income are able to allow me more influence than younger generations maybe ..
Well that brings clarity. & I am a willing participant, as an over the road team truck driver I use door dash way more than I want to admit. I’ll shift to buying smaller hauls to use up weekly & store in the mini fridge, I personally can do better & shall!!
Plant meat is bad. Our bodies need real protein. Grass fed organic beef or bison. Local Farms get producing that at reasonable prices and watch things change. We need to be self stable and not dependent on corporates who play a tug of war with our lives to control. Convenience game is what they play to move us on their pathway to slavery. We must fight our way back out of this hole and regain stability in order to move us in the right direction. Anything global- leaders, organizations, lone rangers run away from.
Recently the subsidized apt bldg I live in began charging a ridiculous amount of money if you pay your rent with cash. Their office was a few blocks away so I've always paid in person. They recently moved... somewhere, idk. Then we got notice of a rent increase and a new rule, we must now have renters insurance. This notice had the new web address where we pay now. And whaddya know they sell insurance too. Is it me or does that seem wrong somehow? And a 25% increase feels a bit high.
You have identified several instances of monopoly power in pricing which certainly can and does increase profitability of large corporations.
On the other hand to write off inflation as an excuse for raising prices minimizes inflation when it is the elephant in the room.
If I decided to bury a future stash of savings from 1971 for the future, I had a couple of choices.
1). Bury $5,000 in currency.
2). Bury $5,000 in gold.
Either one would have bought a quite nice brand new car in that year with money left over.
My $5,000 in currency would buy exactly that amount in goods and services today.
My $5,000 in gold would be worth around $490,000 in currency and would buy that amount of goods and services today.
I picked 1971 as a starting point because that is when the dollar was removed from the gold standard. Had it stayed on that gold standard the value of currency would be equivalent to gold.
Gold has not improved or changed as it is an element. Gold has been used as money for at least two thousand years.
Unbacked currency will always return to its intrinsic value which is zero. You are in the latter stages of that process.
The big heist was when the dollar was removed from the gold standard.
Watch the videos from Alasdair MacLeod for a further explanation of the monetary robbery we all are experiencing. He is also on substack.
This one lands hard because it’s structural, not rhetorical. You didn’t argue morals—you mapped mechanics. Once you see rent and groceries collapsing into the same ownership ceiling, “inflation” really does fall apart as an explanation. The kitchen insight is especially sharp; that was the last household buffer, and its removal makes the rest of the extraction almost automatic. This isn’t outrage bait—it’s an X-ray.
That’s what I call a well written compliment. Perfect blend of synopsis and positivity. If you’re not a paid writer, you should be. I completely concur.
Everything you write always exists alongside our surroundings at this specific moment in our lives. Every topic is highly relatable and easy to understand. 🤗🙏🏻
Yes Ethan
Here’s my take:
Shop from local small businesses. Cook at home. Combine purchasing power with neighbours if you live alone.
Buy eggs and vegetables from the farm gate if you can. If you do not drive or don’t have that option find a food co op and help out in return for a free delivery. Grow your own herbs and salads. Don’t say no to those $5 boxes of fruit that are getting soft. (It can be used immediately, puréed, cooked or frozen.) Consider “ethnic” foods. (For instance I buy 3 kg locally made feta cheese which comes in brine for $40 . I pack half in jars of olive oil and herbs and use the rest fresh, a little most days, plus I have plenty to give away. This lasts me six months. )Invest in good quality olive oil. Eat fresh. Stay well! Escape the cartels behind the big supermarkets (and never buy from Amazon!) Best for the holidays 💚🌺🇦🇺
I think you’re doing important work. I wish you success; I want to encourage you, and I offer this in a constructive spirit—I like the post, but I find a lot of it confusingly ambiguous and hard to follow.
For example, in the “Sanitation Shift” you seem to be talking about meatpacking plants. Is that right? If so, why not just come out and say it? The word “sanitation” doesn’t lead in that particular direction. Is it being used metaphorically? If so, what exactly is being cleaned up? It’s not at all clear. Then, I have to read between the lines about industrial processing and the equipment names to figure out what’s going on. That’s reader energy spent, and when too much is depleted, I stop reading.
Another problem for me is how there isn’t any direct evidence in the “evidence lockers,” so it’s hard for me to envision the scope of the problem. If you actually are writing about child labor in meatpacking plants, that’s a big legal deal. But what specific plants and companies are you talking about? How many children, what ages, and where? Is any of this a matter of public record—news articles, police reports, lawsuits etc.? Without that information, it’s hard to understand what’s going on, how big it is, who’s responsible, etc.
The same goes for the explanation about the grocer-landlord nexus. Are you saying that there are specific companies (Black Rock? Vanguard?) that own, for example, both Safeway and some particular apartment complex conglomeration? Or are you saying that a particular bank, or labor union, or NGO is paying certain people? It would really help to read that level of specificity. Otherwise, it’s like being told that, say, there are murderers who are also dentists. How many? Where? Who? I’d like to know before my next annual checkup!
Again, this criticism is meant entirely constructively. Your posts would, in my estimation, be even more compelling with more concrete examples and detailed explanations. Thanks for considering my opinion!
Appreciate the constructive push. You’re analyzing this through the lens of journalism—asking for specific names, dates, and statutes upfront. That’s a valid frame, but it isn't what this project is doing.
This is forensic noir. The goal isn't to feed the reader a finished conclusion; it's to map the mechanics of the system so you can see the shape of the prison yourself. The ambiguity is intentional. It’s designed to provoke the exact instinct you’re feeling: the urge to dig, to verify, and to ask 'who?'
That said, the evidence lockers aren't just metaphors. If you scroll to the 'Receipts' section at the bottom, there is a link to the primary source dossiers. The court filings regarding child labor in sanitation (PSSI/Packers), the consolidation maps, and the ownership charts are all in there.
The gun is loaded. I just need you to pull the trigger.
Thanks for the clarification. I missed the receipts section in my distraction—maybe highlight their presence?
The question of how best to inform and persuade readers is an interesting one to me. As readers, we all have our resistant cognitive biases and our mental load limits, balanced against our desire to belong, be entertained, and be confirmed in our beliefs. Maybe explicitly framing deliberate ambiguity as such could add to its effectiveness—or if you’ve already done that, I must have missed it.
Thanks again.
Agree with everything you said tenfold. I was thinking it, you wrote it. Thank you.
Thanks for reading!
I just received a notification that our property manager is requesting that the state authorize yet another increase. Every year it’s okayed.
Another great piece, Ethan.
Any excuse to increase margins. They did it with the pandemic and they are doing it now. Corporate greed will kill America.
The large corporation i work for is adding 1million in PROFIT every year, I see the certificates in the office.
That large corporation was recently bought by none other than KROGER.
I am fortunate, hav8jg vwry few obligte expenses, yet I can barely afford to buy (actual, healthy) food from the place I give all my energy to.
And saving ANYTHING at all is almost impossible, again by design.
Its way too obvious to ignore, at least for people who need to work for a living, like I do.
And despite those millions IN PROFIT from a SINGLE STORE, and my slightly elevated position, working full-time, I'll get 2 50-cent raises if im lucky, and a pathetically small 'profit sharing' check 2x per year. Each profit-sharing payment comes out to be a little less than a paycheck, for someone in my position and
hours.
A non-manager gets less.
I dont think part-timers even get 'profit-sharing benefits' at all.
What a sick joke our civilization is.
Universal owners above the roof.
Universal owners above the cart.
So you’re saying they own the homes and the food without our input or influence or choices but we have ability to own home and I buy a cow and have it butchered. I think my age and income are able to allow me more influence than younger generations maybe ..
Fall in line, take the mark or you will not receive food...if it is not here, it soon will be.
We need to fight it now not after the fact when the Giant is bigger and more powerful.
Very in depth and insightful. So much corruption in "the system".
#BigGovernmentSucks
Well that brings clarity. & I am a willing participant, as an over the road team truck driver I use door dash way more than I want to admit. I’ll shift to buying smaller hauls to use up weekly & store in the mini fridge, I personally can do better & shall!!
I'm having some trouble finding the first 2 episodes, any way you can send me the links!?!!
Episode 1: https://constructamiracle.com/p/the-illusion-index
Episode 2: https://constructamiracle.com/p/how-they-turned-your-home-into-a
Episode 1: https://constructamiracle.com/p/the-illusion-index
Episode 2: https://constructamiracle.com/p/how-they-turned-your-home-into-a
People need to stop eating meat - take away one of the ways they try to control the consumer. Plant protein is plentiful and healthy.
No, its not...
Plant meat is bad. Our bodies need real protein. Grass fed organic beef or bison. Local Farms get producing that at reasonable prices and watch things change. We need to be self stable and not dependent on corporates who play a tug of war with our lives to control. Convenience game is what they play to move us on their pathway to slavery. We must fight our way back out of this hole and regain stability in order to move us in the right direction. Anything global- leaders, organizations, lone rangers run away from.
Recently the subsidized apt bldg I live in began charging a ridiculous amount of money if you pay your rent with cash. Their office was a few blocks away so I've always paid in person. They recently moved... somewhere, idk. Then we got notice of a rent increase and a new rule, we must now have renters insurance. This notice had the new web address where we pay now. And whaddya know they sell insurance too. Is it me or does that seem wrong somehow? And a 25% increase feels a bit high.
You have identified several instances of monopoly power in pricing which certainly can and does increase profitability of large corporations.
On the other hand to write off inflation as an excuse for raising prices minimizes inflation when it is the elephant in the room.
If I decided to bury a future stash of savings from 1971 for the future, I had a couple of choices.
1). Bury $5,000 in currency.
2). Bury $5,000 in gold.
Either one would have bought a quite nice brand new car in that year with money left over.
My $5,000 in currency would buy exactly that amount in goods and services today.
My $5,000 in gold would be worth around $490,000 in currency and would buy that amount of goods and services today.
I picked 1971 as a starting point because that is when the dollar was removed from the gold standard. Had it stayed on that gold standard the value of currency would be equivalent to gold.
Gold has not improved or changed as it is an element. Gold has been used as money for at least two thousand years.
Unbacked currency will always return to its intrinsic value which is zero. You are in the latter stages of that process.
The big heist was when the dollar was removed from the gold standard.
Watch the videos from Alasdair MacLeod for a further explanation of the monetary robbery we all are experiencing. He is also on substack.