State of the Economy:

Inflation continues to rise as the nation moves toward recession. Oil prices have hit an all time high, exceeding $100 per barrel, with no end in sight.

Yesterday I stopped in the post office to buy some stamps. The message: don’t buy many because the price is going up another penny. I joked that I guessed the mail workers needed a raise, but it was quickly pointed out to me that the increase in the price of postage was meant to offset the cost of trucking the mail around the country. But postage is just a tiny tip to this iceberg. Everything seems to move by truck nowadays.

Check out the tables and grafts in this afternoon’s New York Times update.