The next time Bernanke or anyone else says the weak dollar means nothing at home, think again. Besides contributing to the runaway gas prices, it also means that food staples are even cheaper than before for export markets. As the economies of India and China increase, they have more cash to buy cheap American corn, wheat, beef, etc and that means competition. Competition means higher prices. Add to that the inflated gas prices for corporate farming and transport and you have price increases at the grocery store not seen since the 1970s. The odds of McCain or Republicans disrupting the system they built stand somewhere between slim and nil.

Rising food prices can be particularly corrosive to consumer confidence because people are so frequently exposed to the cost increases. “It’s the biggest risk we face economically, and it might be the thing that does us in,” said Rich Yamarone, director of economic research at Argus Research Corp. in New York. “There’s nothing really worse than having a job, making money, and forking most of it over just so you can have the same amount of food. You’re running in place, and it really weighs on you.”