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My analysis was "Doesn't look so dire to me?" and I don't think the point you raised leads to a different conclusion. I can tell you know the topic well, but w

by cheriot 1mo ago

My analysis was "Doesn't look so dire to me?" and I don't think the point you raised leads to a different conclusion. I can tell you know the topic well, but we're at the same place CPI criticism always come back to: "It's flawed, but the alternatives are worse, don't exist, or in some way not practical."

smallmancontrov 1mo ago
Exactly the opposite: CPI is worse than the alternatives at long timescales, despite their flaws. I know you really really want to make this about the flaws in the alternatives, but I have spent many sentences dealing with the flaws in those in good faith while you have yet to reciprocate at all with any in defense of CPI, either in comparative or absolute terms. Because you know that's a losing game. CPI is cooked, the FRED real wages graph is cooked, your conclusion from it is cooked, and you know it's cooked.
- cheriot 1mo ago
  You seem stuck on the idea that real wages have declined within the last 10 years. Is this vibes or real data? Because nit picking data to justify vibes and dropping the thought there is dumb. Gold is a market where price moves for reasons unrelated to price level. It was stagnant for decades because rich country consumers value it less and now it's on a run as the US weaponizes the monetary system. It's just not useful to represent inflation over the last 10 years. Housing is even worse. Unlike dollars and gold, every house is unique and in a different location. It's one of the least useful parts of CPI for the same reason it's a worse deflator on it's own. I use CPI because it's useful, it exists, and it has less problems than the alternatives on a 10 year chart. We're not comparing to a basket of hand sewn shoes and a horse from the 1820s.
  - smallmancontrov 1mo ago
    You still haven't engaged with a single one of my CPI critiques. 100% offense, 0% defense, you are not operating in good faith. If you can't defend CPI, maybe you should stop making grand proclamations based on it.
    - cheriot 1mo ago
      If you don't like the data I used offer data that's more informative. You've failed to do that. Denying reality by nit picking the best data available is not useful.

by cheriot 1mo ago

smallmancontrov 1mo ago

Exactly the opposite: CPI is worse than the alternatives at long timescales, despite their flaws. I know you really really want to make this about the flaws in the alternatives, but I have spent many sentences dealing with the flaws in those in good faith while you have yet to reciprocate at all with any in defense of CPI, either in comparative or absolute terms. Because you know that's a losing game. CPI is cooked, the FRED real wages graph is cooked, your conclusion from it is cooked, and you know it's cooked.

cheriot 1mo ago
You seem stuck on the idea that real wages have declined within the last 10 years. Is this vibes or real data? Because nit picking data to justify vibes and dropping the thought there is dumb. Gold is a market where price moves for reasons unrelated to price level. It was stagnant for decades because rich country consumers value it less and now it's on a run as the US weaponizes the monetary system. It's just not useful to represent inflation over the last 10 years. Housing is even worse. Unlike dollars and gold, every house is unique and in a different location. It's one of the least useful parts of CPI for the same reason it's a worse deflator on it's own. I use CPI because it's useful, it exists, and it has less problems than the alternatives on a 10 year chart. We're not comparing to a basket of hand sewn shoes and a horse from the 1820s.
- smallmancontrov 1mo ago
  You still haven't engaged with a single one of my CPI critiques. 100% offense, 0% defense, you are not operating in good faith. If you can't defend CPI, maybe you should stop making grand proclamations based on it.
  - cheriot 1mo ago
    If you don't like the data I used offer data that's more informative. You've failed to do that. Denying reality by nit picking the best data available is not useful.