[hedgetrimmer]

Come Sunday, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s residential customers will see, on average, an 11.1 percent increase in the price they pay for electricity.

The increase in their natural gas costs will be worse. Those are expected to soar in January to levels 43.4 percent higher than they were a year ago, extending a three-month run-up in gas prices.

The result: The average PG&E customer will face a combined bill of $224.06 in January, compared with $175.22 a year ago.

[pissant]

That sucks. Just put on a sweater.

[steve86]

RE: inflation. I know that a large multinational ag comglomerate just raised the contract prices it pays farmers around here by 7%. I'm happy for the farmers: otherwise they'd be out of business. Diesel is $2.90 here. And yet the government's CPI and PPI say that inflation is negligible or negative. Guess I have to join the doubters on the healthy economy.

[iThinkBig]

"Come Sunday, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s residential customers will see, on average, an 11.1 percent increase in the price they pay for electricity.

The increase in their natural gas costs will be worse. Those are expected to soar in January to levels 43.4 percent higher than they were a year ago, extending a three-month run-up in gas prices.

The result: The average PG&E customer will face a combined bill of $224.06 in January, compared with $175.22 a year ago."

This is a great point. I bet the polls showing a more positive outlook in the South for example where people aren't being walloped by high energy bills. The Midwest and New England probably poll lower. The economy in general is healthy, disposable income I would speculate has gone down a bit in ratio's compared to the late 90's. A lot of my middle class friends are struggling a bit but it isn't Bush fault. It's high energy prices combined with rising interest rates/payments on all of those adjustable mortgages and credit cards.