To Stamp or Not to Stamp

I'm a bit obsessed, I guess, with this inflation issue. It follows me everywhere. Today I went out to get some photocopies done around the corner, and I saw something odd. Something that struck me as funny at first, but very sad when the laughter stopped.

One of the girls at the photocopy place was putting stamps on some mail ... you know, regular mail, snail-mail, old-fashioned post-office thing that doesn't come with a "Send" button ... you get the point. An envelope, address, stamp. The real thing. When you get collectible stamps, etc. I'm trying hard to be redundant because this was not a regular envelope: it was an inflation-stricken letter, created by Freddy Krueger ... aestethically inadequate. Ugly. Expensive-looking. A bastard child of inflationary economies.

See for yourself:

This deserves an explanation. Sending letters to the Province of Buenos Aires used to cost $ 6.50 (u$s 2 and a bit). Stamps were denominated in $0.75 and $0.25, some higher even. Now snail-mail - unlike its digital counterpart which cuts costs constantly - is increasing its prices. Sending a letter to the province now costs $11.50 or so (almost u$s 4). And stamp denomination was not automatically "increased", since they are printed and it takes time. So, they now have to use a crapload of stamps - filling 50/60% of the envelope, to put enough stamps ... God save us all from oblivion.

Snail-mail is dead. Long live snail-mail.

Price Distortion

Today I found out first-hand about the real price distortion in Argentina. I had to go for the first time to a new graduate program where I began teaching and, since I had no clue how long it would take to get there, I went there by car. Since someone took the only empty space in front of the University, I had to look for a parking spot around.

Two blocks away, I found this horrid-dirty looking parking place ... $ 4.20 an hour (u$s 1.40). Fair enough, given the u$s 2 charged in mid-town. So I went to class - a nice enough group of lawyers doing a law/biz adm graduate program - and then went back to get the car. On my way back I prayed to God it would still be there, and it was. The problem was when I asked "how much?" and the guy took my ticket, put in a couple of numbers in the machine, and spat out "$ 11". I looked at the price list (yes, sue me, I am an accountant and work in pricing and planning) and said "it's wrong - 2 1/2 hours is $ 4.20 x 2 plus $ 2.10 - that's only $ 10.50". To which he replied "I gotta charge you what the machine says. It says $ 11." Faced with that undeniable logic, added to the fact my car was nowhere in sight, I payed up, asked for a receipt and as I climbed on my car mumbled "this is the first and last time I come here" - to which he replied "fine".

My conclusion: this was a description of economics of plentiness. What is that? Too many cars around, the parking lot was overflowing, and they still had room to increase prices before getting hassled by authorities. So, why care about me? I would be replaced instantaneously by another sucker. And then another. In a year of record car sales (300.000 during the first six months of the year), he might be right not to care. At least, ntil the next crisis and until he closes down the lot and puts up a 5 on 5 soccer court or paddle tennis or the next fad.