I think it was back in the 70s when I first saw a comedy from which a certain scene has stuck with me. It is relevant to today’s top economic news.
A man is in a hotel in bed with his mistress. His wife bursts in the door cursing and swearing at what she sees. The man ignores her while he methodically gathers up his mistresses’ clothes and herds her out the door.
After she is shoved out into the hall and the door closes they are alone. He turns and calmly asks her “Honey what are you so upset about?.”
She sputters “That girl. That whore.”
“What girl?” he asks. “What girl are you talking about?”
“That bitch of yours. The one you just put out of this room. I saw her with my own eyes.”
“But honey. There’s no girl. Who are are you going to believe? Me or your eyes?
What’s relevant today is this same actor seems to have moved on to become head of the COLA (cost of living adjustment) program that is supposed to keep the income of elderly Americans from encroachments by inflation. If here is no inflation – there is no offsetting increase in their fixed incomes because they don’t need it.
On that basis – earlier today – the US Treasury announced there is no need for a COLA.
Anyone who says otherwise is simply wrong and the government has the manipulated numbers to prove that.
In the past year my cost of a bus and subway ride has NOT gone up 5%. Anyone who says it has is delusional. Those signs at the turnstiles and the fees charged by card readers are actually there temporarily while a film company is making a movie set maybe 20 years in the future.
The cost of apples and oranges and other fruits have NOT gone up between 20% and 50% in the past year. Anyone who says they have is a Communist (that usually shuts ’em up).
My rent did not go up 5%. What looks like an increase on my apartment lease is simply an arithmetical correction required to mitigate the framistanous sulmanistic recalibration of the verglast.
Yes the cost of gasoline has actually gone down.That’s great news for folks who drive cars. Are you aware how many seniors do not drive cars at all? I’m one of them. You could give me a car but I cannot not afford even the cost of parking it – an expense that has gone up 25% this past year alone as new buildings go up with new spaces being added.
But nothing else derived from oil has gone down. Airplane tickets are still higher. Trucking costs are up. Postal services are up again.
Medical costs are up again.
What girl are you taking about?