Heck, there were quite a few times if I ordered something in the morning, it was on my doorstep the next day. But not anymore. A quick scan of my recent orders shows if I tried to order the same thing again now, it's about an even split between a Feb 2 estimated delivery date and Feb 8. Again, these are not backordered items.

If the same thing was happening everywhere, I'd understand. But the idea that other online retailers are beating Amazon in delivery and price was unheard of two years ago.

I've heard (specifically on Clark Howard) that Amazon has been slowly raising prices in recent years. They were going after market share early on, but now they are actually trying to be profitable as a retailer. So their current business plan is to be a provider of convenience, not one of rock-bottom prices.

All that is fine, but not if it takes two weeks to get something that used to show up in 24 hours, and still would show up in 4-5 days if bought somewhere else. That sounds more like a mega-retailer assuming they've got their captive audience and can treat them however they want instead of continuing to provide a service people find useful.