I'm not asking if inflation currently exists - it definitely does - but I'm more curious to know if it actually is a big deal? Is it just a transitory thing or are there actual warning signs for larger issues?

Someone who is good at economics please explain

  • Quimby [any, any]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Yes, inflation is bad right now, and yes, it is a problem in the short term. Long-term, it remains to be seen if it will end up being much of a problem. And, of course, whether it will continue.

        • Quimby [any, any]
          ·
          3 years ago

          exactly! give away clothing and furniture, carpool, etc etc etc. Anything that makes greater use of things we already have and reduces demand for new things should help.

          • TheLepidopterists [he/him]
            ·
            3 years ago

            There are about 3,300,000 people working in call centers in the US, less than a third work from home. All of the them should be working from home; it'd free up the majority of the space the call centers are in for more productive use (housing, factories, green space, recreational facilities, etc), and reduce costs to both society overall and the individual workers by putting an end to a massive amount of commuting.

            And COVID-19 quarantines resulted in the entire industry proving that they could handle working from home but a ton of them have/are shifting back to in office work. I guess we'll just all keep heating the planet up and giving each other covid so that executives can walk around populated office buildings and feel important.

            • Quimby [any, any]
              ·
              3 years ago

              one caveat: because of the poor housing conditions in the US, many people don't have a suitable location to work from home. for example, it can be hard to work in a 1 bedroom apartment with 4 other people, especially if talking is involved.

              • TheLepidopterists [he/him]
                ·
                3 years ago

                I don't know. Call centers are relatively crowded, so the default work experience is already that there will be a ton of audible conversations in the background that you have to tune out.

                It's stressful, but it's not a new form of stress.

                EDIT: Also reduced transportation costs could allow for moving to better housing. It would also help if some of the money the business would save could get passed along as increased wages, but you know how the hogs are so that's obviously not going to happen.

                Probably best to just overthrow the whole thing and establish a DotP.

          • SerLava [he/him]
            ·
            3 years ago

            Because if people get wealth transferred from the rich while inflation goes up, wealth inequality goes down, and it doesn't matter as much or at all if the price number goes up, unless it's extremely fast

            It also make debt go bye bye