Inflation @ MindSay

interesting is that North Dakota - is now the number one wheat producing state in the USA, when Kansas used to consistently DOUBLE North Dakota's wheat production

And the hits just keep on coming.

Global wheat stocks are at their lowest levels since 1979.
 The ongoing Australian drought is one of the reasons why.

After America, Australia is normally the second largest exporter
 of grain, and in a good year it would hope to harvest about 25 million tonnes.

But the country remains in the grip of the worst drought in a
 century, which is why the 2006 crop yielded only 9.8m tonnes.

This is the 2nd wheat producing country in the world, going from
 producing 25 million tonnes to barely 10 million tonnes of wheat...


Particularly interesting are these:
Australia's food bowl lies empty:

Uganda: 1.5 Million People Face Starvation Due to Foods, Drought
And it so it begins and will go on and on...

When is everyone going to get it, Today we begin
the next great depression. The greatest depression?
How depressing. OK there I called it as I see it.

Over the past few years, millions of U.S. jobs have disappeared,
 and foreign competition is increasingly taking the blame.
Manufacturing jobs to China for the most part because of lower wages
 as well as no pollution controls
(Made by seven year olds for seven year olds!),
 while service sector jobs "offshored" to India.

The more than 209,000 non-farm jobs Ohio lost from 2000 to 2007
 comprised the largest proportionate decline in employment
 since the end of the Great Depression

Employment dropped by 3.7 percent, the biggest seven year
 drop since the period starting in 1939, near the end of the
 Depression and including the years the U.S. military absorbed
millions of American workers to fight World War II.


Michigan lost a greater proportion of its employment than
 Ohio during the period - 9.1 percent or 431,000 jobs.




I wish I could get a job with the government
 so I could just make the following figures up

Why is it that the federal government says the U.S.
 has virtually no inflation, I have to say this
IF YOU ARE STUPID ENOUGH to BELIEVE these FOOLS,
  less that 2 percent,  but everything keeps getting more expensive,
 especially food and gasoline?


Solving this riddle – that is, why everything costs so much
when the government tells us inflation rates are low is simple:

Me thinks The Bureau of Labor Statistics lies.

They say there figures from items that are essential.
BUT THEY ALSO USE OTHER PRODUCTS THAT ARE NOT,
 as well as, Things like gasoline prices, are not figured into the inflation rate

Milk, cheese, petrol, beer, bread we all understand.


take out variables like.

 Rent, Mortgages, Food, Fuel of all kinds, Fares,
Interest Rates, Water Charges, Bank Charges
 (sorry administration fees), Devaluation in Currency.

They do, to be fair, included the price rise for things
 we all use like Pickled Walnuts @ 2.98%.

They use all sorts of products that give them
the lowest figure possible that is just about credible.
But an ipod (Electronics, how often do you go out
and buy those?), that is hardly essential now is it.



Inflation numbers are intentionally manipulated
to keep cost-of-living numbers low.

If the average chief executive officer cooked balance
sheet numbers the way the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
calculates the Consumer Price Index, the CEO would be in jail

Why does the federal government lie about inflation?

Again, the direct answer is simple.

Telling the truth about inflation would require the Federal Reserve
 to raise interest rates and that would be bad for economic growth.

Besides, hundreds of billions of dollars in government entitlement
payment outflows depend on the inflation number.

For instance, federal law mandates that Social Security checks
increase thanks to "cost-of-living adjustments," or COLAs,
 that are supposed to compensate for inflation.




So, higher inflation numbers cost the federal government
millions more in increased Social Security payments.

But when the Bureau of Labor Statistics intentionally rigs
the Consumer Price Index calculations to low-ball the
 inflation rate, Social Security entitlement payments are kept level.

As a result, retirees quietly lose billions of dollars that should
have been paid out, had the cost of living numbers been
reported honestly. But the government saves the expense.

How does the federal government manipulate inflation numbers?

The Consumer Price Index, or CPI, is the central statistic
 the federal government uses to calculate inflation.

The CPI is a complex government statistic that was introduced
in the 1920s to track the market cost of a "basket of goods and services."

Beginning during the Carter administration, federal economists
 cleverly redefined the CPI, with the goal of removing from the
 index expensive items, including food and energy, that would
 push the CPI higher. (food energy yep don't use those every day)


 Core inflation excludes items such as food and energy
because food and energy "face volatile price movements."

In other words, since food and energy prices can spike upwards,
as they have this year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates
"core inflation" without food and energy prices, under the rationale
that food and energy price spikes are merely temporary price
shocks that would distort the measurement of
underlying long-term inflation.

To a family faced with paying rising food costs to feed
 the kids and skyrocketing gas costs just get to work,
 the definition of "core inflation" at 2 percent is a joke,
not at all reflective of the increased dollars the family
has to shovel out just to get by.



Even more disturbing, the Bureau of Labor Statistics'
calculation of "core inflation" is not limited merely to
throwing food and energy prices out of the CPI.

The price of any good or service in the CPI market basket
prone to spiking can be thrown out, under the rationale
 that the items with the largest price changes reflect
passing market disequilibrium that would distort the
measurement of long-term trends.

When removing expensive items from the CPI market
 basket of goods and services was not enough to depress
 inflation numbers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics innovated
 even more, changing the "weighted factors" used in calculating
 CPI statistics, so the results end up under-reporting the
 true inflation people experience in everyday living.






Manipulations of the CPI involved the consideration that
 when steak got too expensive, the consumer would
substitute hamburger for the steak.
So, the inflation measure should reflect the costs
of buying hamburger, not steak.

Of course, replacing hamburger for steak in the calculations
would reduce the inflation rate, but it represented the rate of
 inflation in terms of maintaining a declining standard of living.
 Cost of living was being replaced by the cost of survival.

The old system told you how much you had to increase
 your income in order to keep buying steak,
 The new system promised you hamburger,
 and what will be next dog food, perhaps, after that.

The results of this under-reporting are dramatic,
 with the compounding effect just since the early 1990s
reducing annual cost-of-living adjustments in
Social Security by more than a third.





In truth the government have LIED. (Imagine that)
I can prove it with using all the essential products
we buy equals at least 7%
 Gasoline is well above $3.50 a gallon. "Sticker shock" comes not
just from the cost of buying a new car, but from the $80.00 or more
 it costs to fill up the gas tank, even if you don't own an SUV.

You're lucky if $100 buys two bags of groceries at the supermarket!

Thats also adding some electrical goods that have actually
come down in price this year as to be as near as damn it,
 using the government's inflation model.

So, when you wonder why food and gasoline cost so much
 when the government says inflation is low, just remember:
You are being lied to –
something I suspect you already figured out long ago,
 just by going to the supermarket and the gas station.



Whats important is what you believe.
 Don't believe anybody, anything or anyone.
Get your own information from sources
you can respect or work it out yourself.




The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported in August 2007 a remarkably low inflation rate
 of only 1.7 percent.

Trust me inflation rates are ALWAYS
higher than the government specifies.
 We all know it's much higher.
 We only wish it were only 1.7 percent.

Suicide rates are rising, Bank foreclosures, hyperinflation,
 The war of no end in sight with west Asia
AKA Operation Enduring Occupation,
 Jobs outsourced/lost, this is just the beginning

 What can I say, We're in a big mess right now.

We've been so sold out to foreign manufacturing,
lied to by those who we elect to work for us and
robbed of our American Heritage of freedom.
This is just so depressing, regrettably
 I don't see it getting better any time soon.

Thats my opinion, I really hope I'm way off an this prediction.

The Federal Reserve lowered the benchmark U.S. interest rate by a quarter point to 2 percent and indicated it's ready to pause after seven cuts since September.

``The substantial easing of monetary policy to date, combined with ongoing measures to foster market liquidity, should help to promote moderate growth over time,'' the Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement after meeting today in Washington. The central bank also warned that ``some indicators of inflation expectations have risen in recent months.''

Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and his colleagues dropped a reference to ``downside risks'' to the economy, while acknowledging the damage that the housing slump has wrought on the six-year expansion. Stocks surrendered gains on speculation the most aggressive monetary-policy easing in two decades is approaching an end.

``We do not expect to see a rate cut at the next few meetings without a substantial contraction of the economy,'' said Christopher Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in New York. ``We are not yet to Memorial Day weekend, but the Fed effectively told us today to take the summer off.''
**********
Oil prices reached another record high of $119.93 a barrel on April 28. The Fed said indicators of inflation expectations have risen.

``The committee expects inflation to moderate in coming quarters, reflecting the projected leveling-out of energy and other commodity prices and an easing of pressures on resource utilization,'' the Fed added. ``It will be necessary to continue to monitor inflation developments carefully,'' the Fed said.

At the same time, the economy is faltering. Hours before the Fed decision, the Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product increased at an annual pace of 0.6 percent last quarter. Spending by households, the biggest part of the economy, grew at the slowest pace since 2001, when the U.S. economy was in a recession. (Bloomberg)

Masters of the obvious...Inflation props the stocks up.  Further inflation causes prices to rise.  People stop spending money.  Stocks drop.  Foreign investors cash out fro the US economy to avoid further currency losses, or they take advantage of their buying power and snap up US assets at a steep discount.  Yeah, I know,  I've been reading the news recently.

The economy is dying.  The price of gas, the job market, and the CPI are just symptoms of the real problem...fiat money printed by a cartel of banks that will cash out the US economy like so many poker chips for its owners. Abolish worthless "money" and demolish this monopoly.

China Stops Exporting Rice; Weak Dollar Blamed.
Hold on to your... kiddies this don't look good


Cost Nearly Doubles Since February; Industry Experts:
 Part Of Problem Is China Ceasing Exports Due To Weak Dollar

 There's growing concern about a rice shortage.
 A recent rise in processing costs and increased demand have led to
a shortage across the world.

Some have tried to stockpile, but there are growing fears
some people could have difficulty feeding their families.

Bulk bags of food have been flying off shelves.

"A 50-pound bag of Jasmine rice … this has been the hot seller
 right now," Costco manager Stephanie Gordon said.

With rice a staple in the diet of many families,
there's concern that stores will run out.

"At this time we're not going to engage in any limiting or whatever,
but it's always a possibility," said Costco vice president John Eagan.

Those who do get their hands on a bag of rice
may be dealing with sticker shock.

The price of a bag has nearly doubled in recent months.
 In February the cost was $9. Now it's up to $16.
Industry analysts say the shortage can be attributed to a change
 in Chinese trade policy. The Chinese were once a main exporter
 of rice, but they stopped exporting when the American dollar
 got too weak for them to make a profit.

"This is a significant problem, not just here but especially in parts
of the world where people are living on less than a dollar a day,"
 said Scott Faber of the Grocery Manufacturer's Association.

And skyrocketing production costs aren't limited to rice growers
these days. Since last year, flour has gone up 13 percent, milk 10 percent
and eggs a staggering 30 percent.

"I remember when they used to be five for a dollar, I don't even know
 what they are any more, but I know they're not five for a dollar anymore,"
 one shopper said.

Some experts blame the spike in grocery prices on the government
 fostering alternative uses for corn – a big part of the livestock diet.

"The biggest factor that Congress has under its control is the decision
to make so much of our food into fuel and at a time when our food
 prices are rising so much it doesn't make much sense to do that,"
 Faber said.

Due to the shortage, the Sam's Club warehouse store has limited
its sales of Jasmine, Basmati and long grain rice. Costco has put
a similar restriction on bulk sales of rice and flour.


Oil yesterday $124 bl...  Will Farmers here not be able to plant
as much this year because they can not afford the double?? fuel costs
and seed costs this year?? Just ask SaikotikGunman

Rice for the most actively traded July contracted jumped 62 cents
to $24.820 per 100 pounds on the Chicago Board of Trade,
after earlier rising to a record $24.85.

Relentless demand from developing countries and poor crop yields
 have pushed rice prices up 70% so far this year, raising concerns
of severe shortages of the staple food consumed by almost
 half the world's population.

On Tuesday, Costco Wholesale,  said it has seen increased demand
for items like rice and flour as customers, worried about global food
 shortages and rising prices, stock up.

Food prices are a problem all over the world. An increasing number
of countries have imposed curbs on food exports in a bid to secure
 supplies and limit inflation. Here is a list of some:

    * ARGENTINA — The world's fourth-largest wheat exporter
has effectively extended the closure of its wheat export registry by
pushing back the date that new shipments can start to leave the country.

    * CAMBODIA — Cambodia announced a two-month ban on rice exports.

    * EGYPT — The government is banning rice exports until October.

    * GUINEA — Guinea banned the export and re-export of agricultural,
 forestry, livestock, fishing and oil products.

    * INDIA — India scrapped import duties on crude edible oils and
 banned exports of non-basmati rice amid a raft of measures.

    * INDONESIA — Southeast Asia's largest rice consumer,
will curb medium-grade rice exports.

    * KAZAKHSTAN — Kazakhstan suspended wheat
exports until Sept. 1.

    * MALAWI — Malawi banned maize exports to
 all countries, except Zimbabwe.

    * PAKISTAN — Pakistan could double its wheat imports
this year and may slap a tax on rice exports.

    * RUSSIA — The government has approved extending
prohibitive export tariffs on wheat and barley due to expire on May 1.

    * UKRAINE — Ukraine suspended wheat shipments in the first
week of April and reduced barley exports through its Black Sea ports
 to 8,400 tons from 25,620 in the same period in March.
 It is also considering extending sunflower oil export quotas to
Sept. 1 from July 1 and an increase in the volume to 500,000 tons
 from 300,000 tons.

    * VIETNAM — Vietnam has extended a ban on rice sales until June.

CNN is my at-work news source.  Last night, I was watching this informative short about inflation impacting Americans working for the government in Europe, when I saw a chart that didn't look quite right.  Inflation is taking place, but the line on the chart was suspicious.

That's about the time I noticed the Y-axis units:
I guess that makes it official.  The dollar is being intentionally demolished and the media is right there to help it die.