Inflation here? gas/grocery prices just continue to climb

This 100% and when you get a little further into the story, you'll see that another huge part of the delay and pricing issue is, again, straight out capitalism.

Trucking companies don't seem to even care about increasing the number of truckers on the road. They're killing it. Why would they increase their costs by increasing wages and investing in new plant and equipment when they're as profitable as they've ever been?

Every solution to the "problem" of backlog requires some company to sacrifice for the greater good rather than to maximize their profits and in a day where Gordon Gecko is considered a hero that's simply not going to happen.

And, as you said, all the people out there ready to die on the wall for the free market and capitalism sure seem to be overlooking the live look at a "free market" we're getting right now.
Good point. If trucking companies expand, what will they do when the crisis is over? They'll have too much capacity and a state of hyper competition will be created that could bankrupt them all. Similar to deer living in a small wooded area that can support ten deer. If they breed there won't be enough food to go around.