Bottom line is what ever people are willing to pay is the going price. We (I use the term loosely) are getting exactly what we deserve. If humans weren't by nature greedy, selfish, jealous and general horse's hind end toward one another barter clubs could solve the whole thing and set market prices where they should be. Seriously, residents within any given area have skill, training and ability to perform everything from taxes, auto repair and home repair to plowing snow but don't want to trade because they fear others might benefit unequally.
Here is a real life example of what I'm talking about. A close friend asked to borrow my trailer to haul scrap metal from his parent's farm to the recycle yard. I didn't have anything planed so I went along to help. As we were loading an old washing machine I noticed it had a gas engine and after taking a closer look, asked if I could have it. He asked if it had unusual value and I said I wasn't sure. He asked why I wanted it and I said I wasn't sure but simple thought it would be interesting to tinker with. He said he would just keep it and set it aside. He brought the machine up about 3 months later and I said I was no longer interested. Realizing the fallacy of his actions my friend apologized for how he reacted.
