Business

‘You’re right, ya bum ya!’

Dear John: C.P.’s recent question was absolutely dead-on and one that the American public should be asking. You say, “There could be massive financial problems down the road for this country.”

You don’t think there are now?

I’m 35 years old and have two kids. There is no way I can pay their way through college.

And if the US continues to print money with no backing of the gold standard, my kids and everyone else’s will be the ones who suffer.

I cannot believe, as much as I love the Post, that their economic genius knows nothing about economics. Your column should be titled, “Ask Idiot.” S.B.

Dear S.B. You probably haven’t been reading me long enough. Not only do I think we are currently in serious financial trouble, but I also believe things could get worse.

And there is nobody who has been more critical of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s decision to print money for his Quantitative Easing programs than I have.

So your gripe seems to be that I’m soft-pedaling the current situation. That’s not even close to the truth.

But when looking down a well, you never know how deep the hole goes. I’m saying that the bottom may be farther down than most people believe.

Despite your calling me names, I think we are pretty much in agreement on most things. So . . . have a nice day.

Dear John: The reason it is almost impossible to compare prices on appliances is that manufacturers offer each major customer a different part number.

For example, a GE dishwasher may be a GE1234W; the “W” is for “white.” For Sears, it is a GE1234WS; for Lowe’s, it may be GE1234LSW, etc.

The service manuals even state that the model numbers in the manual may not exactly match what you have bought.

This is the reason so many stores can afford to offer you $100 if you find a lower price for their product anywhere else. Occasionally you will see a better price on Amazon or one of those sites listing dozens of prices. But a more careful look at the item actually being offered shows a slightly different number. M.K.

Dear M.K. Thanks. This was in response to my Black Friday effort to compare online prices with those being offered at Target using the app supplied by Amazon.

So if what you are saying is correct, maybe the brick-and-mortar stores have a fighting chance for a little longer.

Send your questions to Dear John, The NY Post, 1211 Ave. of the Americas, NY, NY 10036, or john.crudele@nypost.com.