The fact that the financial media screamed the typical “inflation is going down” headline to induce another surge in equities, the underlying reality that the masses are enduring tells a truly much more severe story which is destroying the living standards of many lower income earners in the American public.
The fact that these pages once again refers to the higher for longer natures of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Sticky-CPI should provide some perspective as to the severity of the inflation problem which may well trouble this Fed and administration for longer than desired.
Meanwhile, let’s take a quick look at what the peasants, er, majority of the United States population is enduring, because after all if one is whining about inflation you either hate the current administration or just didn’t succeed in life if one believes what is said in the financial propaganda media.
The Consumer Price Index data below is directly from the Federal Reserve FRED website and reflects the real, everyday impact on the American lower and middle class.
Despite the crop problems overseas, the price has been complicated by the inane trade war and the costs of tariffs that “weren’t going to be passed on to consumers” has been passed on to consumers.
If one wants to hope that Americans suddenly start eating worms or go vegan, forget about it. We’ll pay the higher prices to eat our cheeseburgers and seafood, but we will bitch about it.
Too bad Gen Z doesn’t drink. Then this article on inflation might make some sense to them.
People don’t want to hear about the average individual’s struggles, but the power companies, natural gas companies, and heating oil companies are not about to eat any inflationary surges.
Thankfully, according to Bessent, no one flushes their toilets or gets their garbage picked up.
On the good news side of things, we’ve been told rents are dropping. On the bad news side of things, it’s not on a national average and only in places where there are no jobs and people do not want to live.
Unless one is leasing, buying a new car every two years, or just doesn’t pay their bills, this is killing the middle class.
Hopefully no one uses a hairdresser or barber because prices are still skyrocketing. Hell, I informed my barber I demand a mixed drink with every haircut if he’s going to charge that much.
I would say that “health care” is unaffordable but that only applies to those who don’t qualify for government assistance or actually pay cash for services. And if you need a major medical procedure, Chapter 7 Medical Insurance is your best bet.
For those who believe government statistics, I present to you this brilliant observation by Charles Biello via X today:
And if you believe that health insurance costs have declined in the last 5 years, surrender your crack pipe and please seek help. Immediately.
Then again, if you still smoke crack or snort illegal substances, the idea of imputed calculations might make sense to you and believe prices are dropping, as Bloomberg‘s chart below illustrates the fallacy of the CPI and the nonsense that these pages and this radio host has been ranting about for 20 years.
It’s all about pumping markets and political convenience.
Do not believe the data if you can witness reality with one’s own eyes. The truth is that inflation has been used since the GFC to depreciate the dollar to support paying off the garbage debt instruments that were never settled in the 2005-2014 era.
The bill is now due. Inflation is the only playbook the powers that be know.
Sadly, propaganda to promote an alternate reality is also the only solution they understand. For the majority of America, that’s a very painful route which ends in a political alternative that historically provides a path to a system one does not want to live under.