The World’s Largest Economy Is Built on Junk.

This morning, I walked into one of the ‘gourmet’ coffee bars near my home, purchased 12 ounces of ‘French brew’ coffee for $5.75 and sat down to write my first story which I then posted online.

If I had gone about a mile further down the road, I could have bought the same cup of coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts for $2.75. And Dunk also has a few tables where I can sit and use their free wi-fi.

Across the street from Dunk is an outlet for one of the convenience store chains near me, where the same cup of coffee minus the table and the free wi-fi costs $1.95. Of course, I also have a hot spot on my droid so I could have gotten my coffee at the convenience store and sat in my car to write and post my brilliant thoughts online.

Why did I spend $5.75 on a cup of coffee when I could have bought thew exact, same item more cheaply at not one but two other locations that were 5 minutes away from where I plunked down almost 6 bucks for a paper cup filled with hot water which had a little taste?

Because like just about everyone else in the United States, the last thing I worry about when I buy food or anything else is whether I could buy the same item more cheaply if I went somewhere else.

Last week I needed some item or other and remembered to purchase the product (I think it was a…