Yesterday, the Consumer Price Index report came out showing that the CPI increased by 8.5% (seasonally adjusted) year-over-year. This means that the CPI is 8.5% higher than it was in July 2021.

Wages were 5.5% higher, so you only lost 3% in buying power. Haha. Sorry.

[I personally find this incomprehensible as every commodity and food stuff I look at is wildly more expensive over the last year than 8.5% — eggs are up by 40% — but that’s just me.]

As a constituent part of the report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it was reported that the CPI did not increase — 0.0% increase — when compared to June of 2022. Look at the graph above and see the flat spot where July 2022 is shown.

You, being a numbers wizard, immediately recognize the difference between yearly and monthly numbers.

Here is a link to the Bureau of Labor Statistics report.

BLS CPI Report

The Biden admin, being incorrigible liars, took a victory lap saying, “Inflation was zero.” This, of course, is simply not true.

An Analogy

Suppose you had gained 125 lbs in the last year due to pandemic-driven food consumption. You could not break your three-cheeseburger-a-day and a half-gallon-of-ice-cream (peaches and cream) nightly habit and thus you porked up by 125 lbs.

For whatever reason, in the month of July you exercised some restraint and did not gain a pound.

However, dear person, you are still hauling around 125 lbs of suet on the skeleton, but you just didn’t gain any weight in July. You are still unhealthy and sick.

The US economy is still mired in the highest inflation in more than 40 years, prices have risen and have not gone down, but in July, it did not get worse.

You are still a very unhealthy economy and still need to shed 125 lbs. You are not well.

Why, Big Red Car?

Very simple, dear and beloved reader — the price of gas went down as it does every year during the post 4th of July summer driving season. Right now, Americans are driving fewer miles and buying less gas and when demand diminishes, prices do also.

If the price of gas had not gone down, you would have seen the same level of growth in costs as last month.

Why lie to the American people?

The Biden admin and Joe Biden himself think you are hopelessly stupid. They think they can tell you “inflation was zero” and you are too stupid to understand the difference between month-to-month and year-over-year numbers.

This is insulting, but maybe you really are that stupid. Are you?

But, hey, what the Hell do I really know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car.

Be well, amigos.