28 DEC 2010, Tuesday

• Above, from shadowstats.com, shows government reported Consumer Price Index (CPI) in red.
• But the government has changed the way it calculates the number 3 times since 1980.  Each time it has changed lower inflation rate occurs.  What a coincidence, lower CPI = lower COLA's for Social Security and pension benefits, which means the government can effectively reduce your benefit by paying you in more dollars but they're worth less.  It's all an illusion...that's what politicians do to placate the great unwashed.  Pretty slick, huh?
• The blue line CPI, in the chart above, reflects a CPI without the government changes...which probably addresses why you feel a dollar just doesn't stretch the way it used to.  
• Now, remember that Fed Chief Ben Bernanke doesn't think that we have enough inflation currently and his QE programs are designed to increase the inflation rate more.
• If he succeeds, we are forked!  The mad man must be stopped...and by the way, this is the same man who repeatedly said "sub-prime is contained" prior to the recent economic crisis. 
• I still think that we've another deflationary period prior to inflation taking hold.  Apparently, Bernanke agrees because he is doing absolutely everything he can to prevent it...No?
• Now to more important things...hasn't the recent snow been absolutely great?!!