Every morning i get to make this face as I read the "Associated Press" to see what drivel the upstream "news" source for the mayo empire has deemed fit to feed down to the masses, usually resulting in me making a face like this:
a few days ago we got this real gem
Who wouldn’t like prices to start falling? Careful what you wish for, economists say
hmm well that sounds foreboding! what could possibly be bad about falling prices?
Wouldn’t it be great if prices actually fell — what economists call deflation? Who wouldn’t want to fire up a time machine and return to the days before the economy rocketed out of the pandemic recession and sent prices soaring?
yes! i think it would be good! i would like to be able to afford food that isn't spaghetti!
Many economists caution, though, that consumers should be careful what they wish for.
why?!?
Mainly because falling prices tend to discourage consumers from spending. Why buy now, after all, if you can purchase what you want — cars, furniture, appliances, vacations — at a lower price later?
um.... oki. so like, i can still spend less money? oki?!?
businesses would face intense pressure to cut prices even more
oh the humanity!!!
It’s certainly true that Americans can make their paychecks go further when prices are falling. If food or gasoline prices were to tumble, households would surely find it less painful to afford groceries or their commutes to work
oh my goodness imagine if those selfish people could afford groceries and commuting to work!
who will think of the businesses?!?! omg
anyways, i've spit all my coffee out. I love me some lib economic takes in the morning. so silly, so fun, we're so doomed. what a broken ass system
rant over y'all thank you :3
Think about this, we will never get told that we're in a recession, or that inflation is a runaway, but we're in a convenience store. Typical working-class tradition is you get your snack and your drink for the day at a convenience store. Packs of peanuts are usually two for a dollar, or one for 59 cents. They've been this price for such a long time that I'm kind of flabbergasted they changed it. Those same packs of peanuts? One for $1.59, or two for $3.00. Let me get this straight, there's no inflation, there's no recession, but also your money goes one-third the way it used to. Keep in mind these are prices from from like 2016, not even 10 years ago.. One dollar in 2016 feels like 30 cents today.
How in the absolute fuck am I going to plan for my future in a country where the money is losing value at such a rapid pace? As far as I'm concerned, if you're saving money, that's dumb, because your money's losing value. You're never going to beat the "real"l inflation rates. I haven't even been in the workforce for 10 years, and I can tell you one thing, things aren't going to get any better.
I have a feeling that the government doesn't want us to think, "hey, yeah, we don't need to be saving money because it's going to lose value faster than it'll accrue it, so we need to be spending, spending, spending" because I'm pretty sure that's what causes hyperinflation. I'm not an economist, I'm just some guy, though, and hyperinflation tends to kill your country, your empire, so we'll see.
There won't ever be a recession so long as certain goods that are put into the consumer price index keep it going down. It's like, sure, you can't afford your groceries, you can't afford to eat, but you can go buy a new TV for cheaper than you could ten years ago. So inflation is technically non-existent. But you can't eat TVs, you can eat the rich.