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       #Post#: 731--------------------------------------------------
       Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: RE Date: August 11, 2021, 7:01 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Out shopping this week with my PCA for the first time in a year
       and things have significantly deteriorated.  Many shelves in
       Fred Meyer & Walmart are empty or sparsely stocked.  FM is
       undergoing a "reorganization" moving stock around to different
       locations in the store, clearly trying to mask the empty shelf
       problem.  A couple of fairly basic items like Guacamole mix and
       Onion Soup mix for making dips I was either unable to find or it
       took several tries in different stores on different days to find
       them.  Basic foods like spaghetti, rice and fresh veggies were
       decent.  Meat counter OK but a reduced selection of cuts.  The
       prepared foods  section Deli counter area was much reduced in
       selection.
       The FM distributor employees are apparently on strike in the
       lower 48 which is the ostensible cause of their problems.
       However, the problem is clearly systemic and I expect it to
       increase over the next couple of years.  When it starts to
       afffect the staples, rationing won't be far behind.
       Reports on shortages in your neighborhood welcome in this
       thread.
       RE
       #Post#: 733--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: K-Dog Date: August 11, 2021, 9:15 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I wish video cards were rationed.  then I could at least get on
       a list.
       [img]
  HTML https://pisces.bbystatic.com/image2/BestBuy_US/images/products/6439/6439402_sd.jpg;maxHeight=300;maxWidth=300[/img]
       Rationing is so Un-American.  The genius of the market is
       supposed to fix things.
       [img]
  HTML https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.savagechickens.com%2Fimages%2Fchickenshizzle.jpg&f=1&nofb=1[/img]
       #Post#: 757--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: RE Date: August 18, 2021, 5:11 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Clearly the empty shelf problem is not confined to the Last
       Great Frontier.  COSTCO is having trouble once again with
       "essential" items like TP.  Why exactly is TP essential ???  Use
       a washcloth and rise it out after you wipe!  Unless you ALSO
       have a water shortage problem, I don't see the problem here.
       People managed for millenia without TP.  The only really
       "essential" items sold at COSTCO are FOOD and CLOTHING, and the
       second only if it is cold out.
       The new COVID variant is of course being blamed for this but it
       is much more likely to be a supply chain problem.  I would bet
       Paper Plants are shutting down because the margins there are
       very thin and paper production is very energy intensive.  They
       probably also are having trouble finding workers who will work
       in those stinkholes for min wage.Rationing has begun, at least
       by COSTCO.  I think it is here to stay.  The new normal.
       RE
  HTML https://www.businessinsider.com/costco-toilet-paper-stock-stockpiling-shoppers-limitations-2021-8
       #Post#: 758--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: Nearings fault Date: August 18, 2021, 5:34 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=RE link=topic=52.msg757#msg757 date=1629324719]
       Clearly the empty shelf problem is not confined to the Last
       Great Frontier.  COSTCO is having trouble once again with
       "essential" items like TP.  Why exactly is TP essential ???  Use
       a washcloth and rise it out after you wipe!  Unless you ALSO
       have a water shortage problem, I don't see the problem here.
       People managed for millenia without TP.  The only really
       "essential" items sold at COSTCO are FOOD and CLOTHING, and the
       second only if it is cold out.
       The new COVID variant is of course being blamed for this but it
       is much more likely to be a supply chain problem.  I would bet
       Paper Plants are shutting down because the margins there are
       very thin and paper production is very energy intensive.  They
       probably also are having trouble finding workers who will work
       in those stinkholes for min wage.Rationing has begun, at least
       by COSTCO.  I think it is here to stay.  The new normal.
       RE
  HTML https://www.businessinsider.com/costco-toilet-paper-stock-stockpiling-shoppers-limitations-2021-8
       [/quote]
       Does Costco in the US use cascade as their supplier? I cannot
       say for the US but pulp and paper jobs are highly sought after
       where they exist here usually in small towns on rivers. They pay
       well with good benefits. The work is highly automated as well. I
       know here it is being blamed on the secondary layers of
       distribution ie covid shutdowns in wharehouses and shipping
       hubs. No TP hoarding right now here. Lots of empty shelves
       though. Weird stuff not basics.
       #Post#: 760--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: John of Wallan Date: August 19, 2021, 4:31 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Cant get shotgun powder, wads or lead shot or many rifle powder
       for reloading anywhere in Victoria at the moment.
       Pyrodex, trail boss and most ADI powders out of stock. (Sold as
       Hodgdon in US I think).
       Apparently no one locally making lead shot at the moment. (Might
       make myself a shot tower when I retire!)
       Shotgun primers back in stock after 6 month absence.
       Some black powder around, but still trying to make my own.
       Making cardboard wads for black powder 12G cartridges and
       cutting open cheap skeet rounds to get shot! (Cutting open one
       round to make another!)
       Cant get springs for my jaw crusher feeder at work. 8 to 10 week
       lead time for local manufacture, then cant guarantee will get
       them. No one keeping stock. 12 week lead time from OE supplier
       out of Scandinavia.
       Belt suppliers cat get rubber conveyor belt out of China at the
       moment. Very little made in Australia despite our huge mining
       industry!
       Mate has a 6 month wait for a new Toyota Prado. Shortages out of
       Japan.
       Weird times.
       JOW
       #Post#: 761--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: K-Dog Date: August 19, 2021, 5:13 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I managed to score a video card.  Office Depot had a shipment.
       I found it by going down a list I made of links that check
       online stock.  Obsessively checking links paid off.  The Office
       Depot video cards were sold out within minutes.  They dropped
       shipped from the factory and mine arrived today.  The easiest
       money Office Depot ever made.  They never even had the card.
       One per customer at an inflated, but I won't say outrageous
       price.  I know what the outrageous price is.  I can offset my
       ****-by-bitcoin by selling my old video card which I can still
       get $100 for on E-Bay.  I will list it on E-Bay tomorrow.  The
       old card is decent but the new one kicks ass.  For streaming and
       video editing I need the performance or I'd have kept the old
       GTX-750 Ti.  The new RTX 3060 is more than a generation ahead.
       By the time the card arrived I had fixed all the software
       problems I had been having (from updating drivers getting ready
       for the card).  The computer is fully updated and none of the
       software is broken.  All I had to do was plug it in.  Now that I
       am using it I notice improvements.  The old card was able to
       take care of two 4K screens, but the new one does it just enough
       better to notice.  I am already using the card to learn video
       editing.
       [img
       width=300]
  HTML https://pisces.bbystatic.com/image2/BestBuy_US/images/products/6454/6454319_sd.jpg[/img]
       #Post#: 762--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: RE Date: August 19, 2021, 4:17 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=Nearings fault link=topic=52.msg758#msg758
       date=1629326079]Lots of empty shelves though. Weird stuff not
       basics.
       [/quote]
       I think the issue is anything produced in low volume starts to
       drop away.  When true STAPLES like rice, beans spaghetti etc
       start to disappear, that's when the real problems begin.  I'm on
       the Mealz-on-Wheelz program now which serves up mostly the same
       crap they served up in the Gulag.  I generally throw it out at
       the moment, but if things got sticky enough I suppose I would
       eat it.  When they stop delivering that crap, lots of old folks
       and cripples will die.  They do supply a Fresh Fruit cup though,
       I think locally sourced.  I also can last a very long time just
       on Peanut Butter sandwiches and Cheese and Crackers.  That was
       my main source of sustenance in the Gulag for months.
       I'm still trying to find a better PCA, so far no luck.  All the
       local agencies are super short-staffed.
       RE
       #Post#: 763--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: Digwe Must Date: August 19, 2021, 8:06 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I ordered a Kioti (Korean) tractor from a local dealer in April.
       For about six weeks they told me it was on a ship waiting to
       offload in Houston.  Then they told me the shipment didn't have
       my tractor after all.  I waited into July.  I got word from a
       friend about a small, virtually new Kubota that a local fellow
       had to sell due to family difficulties and I jumped on it.  The
       local Kubota dealer said one of their tractors would also be
       months out if I were to order it new.  I wanted the Kioti
       because it has damn near twice the front loader capacity as the
       kubota - but at least I have a tractor
       I set up two 5hp pumps for fire protection.  I had both 2" and
       1.5" fire hose that I needed to install junctions and reductions
       in to run both sprinklers and nozzles.  I had a hell of a time
       finding what I needed (empty bins)  and had to be creative to
       get where I needed to be.  The plumbing supply guy shrugged when
       I asked him when he would re-stock.  Most of his supply is
       Chinese in origin.
       I have 4 Stihl chainsaws.  Parts and new saws are abundant with
       no supply issues. (German)
       We've built some fence this year and t-posts (steel) were
       impossible to find.  Wooden posts, as a result, shot up in
       price. Entire lines of utility fencing and sheep fencing were
       out of stock.  Cattle panels shot up in price.  Even fencing
       staples and nails were scarce. Luckily we have cedar on the
       property and commenced to make our own posts and rails.
       Small irrigation pumps were weeks out on order unless you got
       lucky and were at the farm supply store when there was a
       delivery.
       Ammo was in short supply for many months.  It got rare and very
       expensive.  So were certain firearms.  A carbine I had my eye on
       has gone up $200 in a few months but is finally available. Ammo
       is generally back in stock - but still very expensive.  I saw an
       ad today for .380 at 80 cents a round.  I thought I was paying
       far too much at 50 cents a round for .45acp a year ago. I don't
       reload (yet) but I understand that there have been occasional
       shortages of some powders and other components.
       My wife sells biochar cone kilns to promote the use of biochar.
       Her steel costs just went up 20% and the cardboard for shipping
       just went up about 15%.
       My neighbors tell me there are empty shelves in Walmart - but
       not because of a supply problem.  They say there is a labor
       shortage and not enough folks to stock the shelves.
       I should also mention the local problems that farmers are having
       getting spare parts for machinery - during harvest season -
       especially for older equipment.
       I can also speak to the dismal crop situation, but that should
       probably in the climate thread.
       #Post#: 764--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Shortages & JIT Problems
       By: RE Date: August 19, 2021, 10:23 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=Digwe Must link=topic=52.msg763#msg763
       date=1629421611]
       I ordered a Kioti (Korean) tractor from a local dealer in April.
       For about six weeks they told me it was on a ship waiting to
       offload in Houston.  Then they told me the shipment didn't have
       my tractor after all.  I waited into July.  I got word from a
       friend about a small, virtually new Kubota that a local fellow
       had to sell due to family difficulties and I jumped on it.  The
       local Kubota dealer said one of their tractors would also be
       months out if I were to order it new.  I wanted the Kioti
       because it has damn near twice the front loader capacity as the
       kubota - but at least I have a tractor
       I set up two 5hp pumps for fire protection.  I had both 2" and
       1.5" fire hose that I needed to install junctions and reductions
       in to run both sprinklers and nozzles.  I had a hell of a time
       finding what I needed (empty bins)  and had to be creative to
       get where I needed to be.  The plumbing supply guy shrugged when
       I asked him when he would re-stock.  Most of his supply is
       Chinese in origin.
       I have 4 Stihl chainsaws.  Parts and new saws are abundant with
       no supply issues. (German)
       We've built some fence this year and t-posts (steel) were
       impossible to find.  Wooden posts, as a result, shot up in
       price. Entire lines of utility fencing and sheep fencing were
       out of stock.  Cattle panels shot up in price.  Even fencing
       staples and nails were scarce. Luckily we have cedar on the
       property and commenced to make our own posts and rails.
       Small irrigation pumps were weeks out on order unless you got
       lucky and were at the farm supply store when there was a
       delivery.
       Ammo was in short supply for many months.  It got rare and very
       expensive.  So were certain firearms.  A carbine I had my eye on
       has gone up $200 in a few months but is finally available. Ammo
       is generally back in stock - but still very expensive.  I saw an
       ad today for .380 at 80 cents a round.  I thought I was paying
       far too much at 50 cents a round for .45acp a year ago. I don't
       reload (yet) but I understand that there have been occasional
       shortages of some powders and other components.
       My wife sells biochar cone kilns to promote the use of biochar.
       Her steel costs just went up 20% and the cardboard for shipping
       just went up about 15%.
       My neighbors tell me there are empty shelves in Walmart - but
       not because of a supply problem.  They say there is a labor
       shortage and not enough folks to stock the shelves.
       I should also mention the local problems that farmers are having
       getting spare parts for machinery - during harvest season -
       especially for older equipment.
       I can also speak to the dismal crop situation, but that should
       probably in the climate thread.
       [/quote]
       Sounds like keeping a Doomstead supplied and in good working
       order is already getting pretty difficult.  Also true is
       Murphy's Law:  No matter how many spare parts you have prepped
       up with, you always need the one thing you DON'T have.  LOL.
       Owning a junk yard to cannibalize for spare parts might be a
       good bizness to be in.
       RE
       #Post#: 765--------------------------------------------------
       Finding Workers Is Harder Than Ever. The Economic Impact Could B
       e Significant
       By: RE Date: August 21, 2021, 12:48 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
  HTML https://www.npr.org/2021/08/21/1028822744/finding-workers-is-harder-than-ever-the-economic-impact-could-be-significant
       Finding Workers Is Harder Than Ever. The Economic Impact Could
       Be Significant
       The number of ridiculous hypothsis in this article is
       astonishing.
       "A biz owner wonders if his old employees have become
       independently wealthy"
       "Workers will eventually return and find beter job at higher
       pay"
       hahahahahaha. :D
       This does of course explain many shortages as well as why the UE
       rate is still so low.  The denominator keeps dropping as workers
       drop out of the workforce.  As long as the rent moratorium goes
       on and you still can get food at the pantries,  why work if
       you're still going to be broke working?  Banks will start
       garnishing paychecks for paying your debt, so it's better to
       keep your bank account empty.  You also need to have less than
       $2000 in assets to qualify for medicaid.
       All in all, it's hard to see an end in sight for this cycle.
       Round and round she goes, where she stops, nobody knows.
       RE
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