Energy prices take a big bite

James Windham, 63, of Hattiesburg, Miss., is a contract trucker for Buddy Moore Trucking in Birmingham, Ala. High diesel prices
“My bring-home pay is less than it was a year ago, even though we’re making a whole lot more money,” Windham says.

Even as his income is being pinched, Windham and his wife, Janice, in July were hit with an increase in their health insurance premiums, which rose to $385 from $319 a week. The house he bought 30 years ago for $20,000 is now worth $40,000, but he hasn’t benefited from enormous price gains that are the norm in some other parts of the country.

USA Today