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The government changed the way they calculate inflation in 1980 and again in 1990. Each time resulted in lower inflation.
What changes were made? How were these changes justified at the time? Typically such changes are preceded by lengthy public and scholarly debate and discussion. Was that the case in the instances you refer to? Are there any signs of practical or theoretical support in the international community? Wouldn't the proper question be whether a particular change made the index "better"?
VendorDude you sound a lot like one of my past forum friends who was creating multiple accounts on here. His name was oaktonite and fairlaker.
Really! You sound like one of my children at about age three. They played with invisible friends for a while also. My children grew up and got over it. What's your story?
We already established there are different measures of "Inflation."
I would assume also that the sun rises in the east. Indices representing different populations will have different weightings. It's elementary.
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Originally Posted by Mircea
Orwell would have a different view.
You are criticizing Orwell's comprehension of mathematics? Fear and cowering are not the reactions of people with even a passing understanding of hedonics.
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Originally Posted by Mircea
"Quality" is highly subjective.....which is the fatal flaw in Hedonics.
Possibly so, as I assume you found your post here to be of high quality. Hedonics itself is meanwhile about numbers. Hedonic tools are an objective means of differentiating between changes in quality and changes in price. The CPI-U is a price index, after all.
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Originally Posted by Mircea
Okay, then why not publish the median in lieu of the mean? Or how about publishing them together for comparison?
Special category indexes are prepared and published because many scholars and researchers are interested in them, and it is easier for BLS to prepare them once up front as opposed to having all of these scholars and researchers grinding them out individually later on. These indexes -- including core inflation -- expand the range of information available. They do not replace or obscure anything.
Inflation has been relatively low for many years now. But that doesn't say no inflation. And low inflation for 20-30 years is still an impressive amount of inflation. And as a result of that plus middle class wages not keeping up, means we have a big problem.
5 years ago the final outcome of the 2008 crash was unknown. 5 years ago no one yet knew that the very rich would be doing so well today and as they have these last 5 years. And that's the fuse igniting that discussion. If the very rich were still significantly off today, I think talk today would be very different.
We would then surely be talking stimulus! <LOL>
Inflation has not been relatively low and that is the problem, it should be. By all reasonable accounts we should actually be in a deflationary environment due to the fall in income of the average working people.
The fact that we are seeing ever increasing inflation in energy, food, medical costs, and many other sectors despite falling wages suggests that there is much more inflationary pressure than there should be given the circumstances. When the pressure to raise minimum wage becomes too much for politicians to bear, it will have a ripple effect throughout the economy which will accelerate what is already happening.
Inflation has not been relatively low and that is the problem, it should be. By all reasonable accounts we should actually be in a deflationary environment due to the fall in income of the average working people.
The fact that we are seeing ever increasing inflation in energy, food, medical costs, and many other sectors despite falling wages suggests that there is much more inflationary pressure than there should be given the circumstances. When the pressure to raise minimum wage becomes too much for politicians to bear, it will have a ripple effect throughout the economy which will accelerate what is already happening.
Inflation is nothing like the '70's. That was real onerous inflation.
Inflation is low because demands are low. And the Fed has been fighting deflation as best as they can muster these last few years.
I just bought CA gas, same price as 3 years ago. Yet with a newer truck, my gasoline cost is way down.
I just paid my home electric bill, lower than 30 years ago. AZ rates have been very stable, we built an energy efficient house. And now have solar on the roof.
My medical premiums go down 30% in August. They will go down much further when I get into Medicare in a couple of years.
In so many sectors there are other much stronger and sudden inputs that affect prices, aside from base inflation.
Inflation is nothing like the '70's. That was real onerous inflation.
Inflation is low because demands are low. And the Fed has been fighting deflation as best as they can muster these last few years.
I just bought CA gas, same price as 3 years ago. Yet with a newer truck, my gasoline cost is way down.
I just paid my home electric bill, lower than 30 years ago. AZ rates have been very stable, we built an energy efficient house. And now have solar on the roof.
My medical premiums go down 30% in August. They will go down much further when I get into Medicare in a couple of years.
In so many sectors there are other much stronger and sudden inputs that affect prices, aside from base inflation.
3 years ago? Seriously? Not cherry picking are we? Gas was $1.65 in 2008, today it is $3.62.
Households paid a record $1,419 on average for electricity in 2010, the fifth consecutive yearly increase above the inflation rate.
Water rates have surged in the past dozen years, according to a USA TODAY study of 100 municipalities. Prices at least doubled in more than a quarter of the locations and even tripled in a few.
The average health insurance premium for an individual rose 32 percent between 2005 and 2012.
The actual cost of food for a family of four increased from $15,589 in 2006 to $18,017 in 2012.
3 years ago? Seriously? Not cherry picking are we? Gas was $1.65 in 2008, today it is $3.62.
Actually, it is you that is cherry-picking. On July 7th of 2008 the barrel of crude hit $147, and the gallon was $4.11, and after the economic collapse became apparent it had fallen to $37 a barrel, and $1.65 by Dec 31st of the vary same year. Don't complain now about a trend that started long ago, and or twist reality to pretend others hands aren't responsible either.
3 years ago? Seriously? Not cherry picking are we? Gas was $1.65 in 2008, today it is $3.62.
Households paid a record $1,419 on average for electricity in 2010, the fifth consecutive yearly increase above the inflation rate.
Water rates have surged in the past dozen years, according to a USA TODAY study of 100 municipalities. Prices at least doubled in more than a quarter of the locations and even tripled in a few.
The average health insurance premium for an individual rose 32 percent between 2005 and 2012.
The actual cost of food for a family of four increased from $15,589 in 2006 to $18,017 in 2012.
Gas was so low in 2008 due to the economic crash and sudden and extreme reduction in world wide demands. Such things have a much stronger and sudden impact on specific prices than inflation these days.
I agree that we have inflation, and over time it is quite visible. Food of course is up. Most recently due to the results of drought. Look at the food prices you posted. Up $2500 in 6 years. 16% in 6 years and I won't argue with that. But nothing like the '70's.
The past few years the official inflation rate has been very low, especially since the last recession. Yet, when I go to the grocery store, the price of meat is has been rising and not just beef, but pork and chicken too.
Gasoline seems stuck at a much higher price and I read in consumer reports recently that the cost of cable TV has been rising above the official inflation rate as well, by a lot.
Do you think the government is measuring the inflation rate incorrectly?
Actually, it is you that is cherry-picking. On July 7th of 2008 the barrel of crude hit $147, and the gallon was $4.11, and after the economic collapse became apparent it had fallen to $37 a barrel, and $1.65 by Dec 31st of the vary same year. Don't complain now about a trend that started long ago, and or twist reality to pretend others hands aren't responsible either.
I am not twisting anything. It is you who seem to have a problem with the truth. I simply proved that the government statistics on inflation are fiction and that it is much more serious than some people on this thread are willing to admit.
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