Free Republic

The Bureau of Labor and Statistics released the January consumer price index today .. reflecting what you already know. The overall inflation rate stands at 6.4%, after the anniversaries of the first two waves of price increases have now tolled. Inflation is the measure of price increases over time. Following two years of massive jumps in price, we are now cycling through and comparing current prices to the previous period when prices had already skyrocketed. This gives a false impression of price moderation (hindsight inflation); however, the price of goods and services is significantly higher, and those prices will not...

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) announced back in July that it had achieved a complete “moderately prosperous society” and eliminated “absolute poverty” in China.However, recent research shows that the number of individuals from households with less than 500 yuan ($80) per capita monthly disposable income has exceeded 220 million in China, a sharp contrast to the statements proclaimed by CCP leader Xi Jinping in remarks for the Party’s 100th anniversary.In the “China Statistical Yearbook 2021” published by the National Bureau of Statistics, 20 percent of all households in China have a per capita monthly disposable income of 656 yuan (US$103),...

For a good chance at a happy life, head to Australia, which one again topped the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Better Life Index, which looks at the quality of life in member countries. The (OECD) — an international economic organization — analyzed 34 countries in 11 categories, including income, housing, jobs, community, education, environment, civic engagement, health, life satisfaction, safety, and work-life balance. (You can read the full methodology here.) We looked at the countries with the highest overall scores, and highlighted a few of the criteria on the following slides. Researchers compared data from 34 countries that...

Obama: "...the economy is far stronger now than it was four and a half years ago." ...as long as one ignores the reality of the following chart... We've seen macro "Hope" and micro "Reality", but for the man in the street, it would appear from the chart above that the trajectory for 'recovery' green shoots is decidedly down and getting worse... even as the President tells the American public they are so much better off... (h/t @Not_Jim_Cramer)

In case you wanted some inspiring ideas for all that disposable income you’ve got just sitting around.

~ Emmerich analyzes disposable income and economic benefits among several key income classes and comes to the stunning (and verifiable) conclusion that "a one-parent family of three making $14,500 a year (minimum wage) has more disposable income than a family making $60,000 a year." And that excludes benefits from Supplemental Security Income disability checks. America is now a country which punishes those middle-class people who not only try to work hard, but avoid scamming the system. Not surprisingly, it is not only the richest and most audacious thieves that prosper - it is also the penny scammers at the very...