Is the price of everything going up?

Inflation is one thing, but the price on some necessary items are increasing at far more than that rate. I just got the renewal notice for my auto insurance policy, for example, and there is a 15% price increase. My agent said to blame it on investment losses and years of price cutting to win market share. Similarly, our homeowner association’s insurance policy (covering common areas and the like) increased by a similar amount when the policy renewed last month. This morning in the Merc, an article explained that due to fears of war with Iraq the price of gas has gone up substantially in the last month here in California. Fears of war? Nothing has actually changed, in other words, but maybe it will and so we should pay more today? Cha-ching for somebody, eh?