Issues for the 2022 Midterm Election - Inflation

A lot of numbers are being quoted by the government and the media to describe the runaway inflation we are currently experiencing.  I am not calling those numbers into question.  They come from what we hope are reliable sources, and those sources presumably have better data than the average person has access to.  Nevertheless, I keep records of what we spend and where we spend it. 

My records are subject to variables that are not accounted for in the information I am providing.  I hope, however, to provide a glimpse into how inflation is impacting one elderly couple in the United States. 

Most people are bored by numbers, statistics, and concrete thinking, so I will keep this concise and spare you the detailed data.  We buy groceries and related general merchandise from a “discount superstore,” a couple of supermarkets, and a meat pack.  The general merchandise includes things like paper products, detergents, and personal care items.  We are on a fixed income, and we are very careful about what we buy and what we pay. 

I compared our average expenditures for the months of February, May, and August for the years 2020, 2021, and 2022.  The price we paid for the necessary items listed increased as follows: 

·    From 2020 to 2021 the price we pay at the “grocery store” increased by about 13.6 percent. 

·    From 2021 to 2022 we paid about 16.7 percent more for the groceries and general merchandise we bought. 

·    From 2020 to 2022 the amount we paid increased by about 32.8 percent. 

A year ago, we eliminated all of our monthly payments except our mortgage.  If we had not done so, we would be in financial trouble today.  I am also aware of the circumstances of young couples who have children, and those I know are struggling to keep from going into the red each month. 

Citizens, everything we buy is delivered to market by truck, train, and airplane.  After taking office in January 2021, President Biden and the Democrats in the House and Senate killed domestic energy production.  The price of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel doubled.  These costs are passed on to the customer – to you and me – in the form of higher prices. 

Our Democratic and RINO Republican “elected representatives” then passed legislation that increased federal spending by trillions of dollars, flooding the economy with cheap money and driving inflation.  To pay for it, they propose to increase taxes on “the rich” and on big business.  We can expect this to cause even more of our productive capacity (high-paying jobs) to move overseas, and the cost of these taxes will be passed along to the consumer in the form of higher prices for the goods we buy.

To try to slow runaway inflation, the Federal Reserve has raised the prime lending rate.  The result is that you will pay more for the things you buy on credit in the form of higher interest rates.  Call that what you will … inflation or an inflation tax.  The end result is that you will pay more for the things you need. 

If you read the available literature, most Economists attribute inflation to bad government policy.  President Biden, the Democrats, and the RINO Republicans have been running things since January 2021.  Ask yourself, were things better before they took over?  YOU BET THEY WERE! * 

So, here comes the emotional part; because that is what people respond to: 

THE INFLATION WERE LIVING WITH IS AN OUTRAGE!  THOSE RESPONSIBLE MUST BE TAKEN TO TASK FOR WHAT THEY ARE DOING TO US AND TO THE COUNTRY!  WE MUST VOTE THEM OUT OF OFFICE IN 2022 AND 2024, AND NEVER, EVER VOTE THEM BACK IN!

 

* For a more detailed discussion of inflation please refer to my post, dated January 21, 2022.