Greene Johnson ran a trading post that supplied staple goods like sugar and flour.

In the U.S., basic staple goods like quality food and water are too expensive for most people to afford,(T.J. Summer 08, pg.

A price freeze on nine basic staple goods was announced on June 14, and at the same time the government announced pay rises of 36-50 per cent for public employees.

The government has in recent months been forced to resort to emergency measures such as building up reserves and reimposing price controls to curb soaring prices of staple goods.

At the end of January the government froze the prices of 14 staple goods, in a measure which Dimitrov described as anti-market but necessary for social reasons.

Gone are many of the traditional shops that sold life's staple goods with a smile.

Consumers have refused to pay more for staple goods, and retailers led by Wal-Mart have gained more power through their growing size.

Prices of staple goods and fuel were duly increased by an average 19.5 per cent.

Either way, it will be an urban purveyor of staple goods and useful electronics.

How is that going to improve the state of rural broadband instead of maybe improving the state of businesses that sell staple goods?