Turkey day costs are up by 6 percent. One thing that U.S. consumers won’t be thankful for this Thanksgiving is low food prices this year. That’s because shoppers will pay 6 percent more than last year for a traditional Thanksgiving meal that includes turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie. This is the largest in recent years, a U.S. farm group said.  The American Farm Bureau Federation grocery list of 12 items estimated the average cost of this year’s Thanksgiving feast for a family of 10 at $44.61, an increase of $2.35 from last year’s average of $42.26, Reuters reports. “Food prices rode the energy price rollercoaster up during the first half of 2008, and as the year winds down, energy prices have moderated somewhat, but food prices have not come down,” said Jim Sartwelle, a Farm Bureau economist. The only decreases in 2008 will be milk, dropping 10 cents to $3.78 a gallon, and miscellaneous ingredients, down 60 cents to $2.69. A total of 179 volunteer shoppers from 38 states participated in this year’s survey. For ways to save your budget and your diet this holiday, see BET.com/Body & Soul’s “Saving Thanksgiving” feature.

Sierra Leone president turns down huge salary increase. An attempt to increase the salary of President Ernest Bai Koroma ten-fold has sparked a public outcry and forced the resignation of his senior aide. Koroma claimed he was unaware of the proposed raise and had not approved it. The requested pay hike also provided retroactive pension payments dating back to 1996 for former President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah and other senior members of the previous administration. Secretary to the President James Sanpha Koroma, who resigned, claimed not to have been the one proposing the increases, but he accepted responsibility. “The president says 2.5 million leones is enough for him- he’s not interested in any increment,” the presidential press secretary told Reuters.  Daily life is a struggle for most Sierra Leoneans, who face erratic supplies of light and water, appalling roads and poor access to health and education services. The proposals sent to Parliament last week would have upped the president’s pay from 2.5 million leones to 25 million leones a month. A similar raise was proposed for his vice president, Samuel Sam-Sumana.