In a word, summer travel stinks. Especially these days, with all the unanticipated staffing shortages. Businesses would like us to think it’s because of the surge in demand. But I think it’s the lack of supply.

Back when the pandemic started, the government passed out PPP loans — paycheck protection loans that were designed to keep people on the job, even when there was no work. The idea was to keep the excess capacity available so it could be quickly scaled up when demand returned.

But many businesses saw an opportunity to make even more cash money. So they took the loans and laid off the employees. And put the money in their pockets.

Now that demand is back, supply is lagging. And as consumers, we are left to suffer.