John Tamny On What Inflation Is and Isn't

UPDATE:  BIDEN'S  ' INFRASTRUCTURE ' PLAN WAGES WAR ON SUBURBAN DREAM

 

Tamny writes:

That inflation is presently the economic story du jour is a likely signal that commenters are a bit shaky about what it is. Economists and most on the left have wholly redefined it as a too much economic growth. Some on the right point to rising commodities, except that they were near monolithically mute in the 2000s when commodities rallied much more substantially. Like everything else, inflation has become a political issue. In reality, it's a devaluation of the unit. In our case the dollar. Inflation is a policy choice as opposed to it being a consequence of some other policy choice. And to claim that rising prices cause inflation is like blaming rain on wet sidewalks. It reverses causation. The opinion piece can be found here.

 

It shouldn't take a PhD in economics for us to realize each and every time the government prints trillions more dollars and pours them into the financial system, it dilutes our dollars and their buying power. Then it takes more of our dollars to buy the same goods and services. Presto, welcome to the world of inflation and ultimately hyper-inflation if the printing press can't be slowed down.