Tyler received a cell phone for his birthday. For the first time, he didn't have to shre with his siblings. And we threw in text messaging as well since we hear it's all the rage with those wacky teens. The first combined bill came in Saturday. $800. Granted, that includes the other three phones. But $800. That child (who was not supposed to use internet) downloaded approximately four times the data that James and I had combined on our smartphones (where we download email every 15 minutes, 24 hours a day). And he paid for some games. And it's $10 a MB if you don't have a data package.

I sat in my car in the cold rain yesterday morning in front of work on the phone with AT&T coming up with the most plausible argument to get some help. I completely played the, "thank you so much; you saved a child's life today" approach and it worked. They're crediting back the charges and we added internet to his phone at a cost of $10 a month

It's clear there is no absolute value for a cellphone MB transfer. It's not possible for it to cost $10 per MB...or unlimited for $10 a month (that's like 2 cents per MB?) What is the real cost for a MB? Are stupid parents keeping AT&T afloat right now with their extortion practices?

Another thing with no absolute value is a slice of cheese at McCrackShack (as the SuperSize Me guy calls it). The incremental cost from a hamburger to cheeseburger is like $0.10. The incremental cost from a hamburger happy meal to a cheeseburger happy meal is like $0.20. Same basic cheese product; twice the cost.

I imagine there's nothing ethically wrong with charging what the market will bear. I mean, that's what kept the American oil industry alive. (I'm not expert and it's been over a decade since I was privvy to the interworkings of an oil company...but the correlation between crude prices and the gas pump is tenuous, at best.) My theory:

Gas is $1 a gallon (late 90's)
2001 - Gas makes lurch to $1.50, fluctuates for a couple of months, stabilizes
Gas is $1.50 a gallon (2002-2003)
2004 - Gas makes lurch to $2, fluctuates for a couple of months, stabilizes
Gas is $2 a gallon
We completely skipped the break at $2.50 and went straight to $3 in 2005
Public outcry, then fluctuations
Since 2006, prices are steady at $3

There much be some psychological name for this - introducing a shocking concept, easing back then creeping up to it again so that it seems gradual.

It would definitely explain why I'm thrilled that my cell phone bill is only $150 this month. I really am going insane.