Inflation, ‘The White Shadow,’ and Nike Sneakers – Opinion

The inflation numbers from October 2020-2021 were a shocking 6.2%. This is a large part of the increase that has been recorded under the current administration. This is a dramatic increase from the 0.2% inflation rate recorded between October 2019 and October 2020 under the Trump Administration.

Inflation hovered at 2-3% for many years. This was even during Obama II and II. The Federal Reserve had always set this goal as their objective to ensure that the economy is healthy and does not overheat, causing inflation.

A calculator that calculates inflation is a great way to find out how inflation affects your purchasing power. It will show you if you purchased an item for a certain amount (in a year that you input) it will tell you what that same item would cost in today’s dollars.

For example, and I’m dating myself here, but in 1979 there was a very popular television show called “The White Shadow.”It was about an ex-NBA bench player of white race who is approached by an old friend to coach basketball at an inner city Los Angeles high school.

His old friend was the school’s principal. Nike shoes were worn by some of the members of the team. Nike wasn’t as widely known back then as it is today. I hadn’t heard of this shoe brand. My friends and I would buy sneakers at Sears (Winner Twos), for around seven to eight dollars.

After watching the Nike players, I knew that I had to get a pair of my own. My mom and I went to Footlocker in the mall, where I showed them the shoes I was looking for. They were a pair of low-top white Nike’s with the black swoosh.

My mom looked at $40 dollar price tags and said: “Boy, are you out of your mind! I’m not paying $40 for a pair of tennis shoes that you’re going to outgrow in a few months.”The shoes could have been easily purchased, but she was unable to afford them.

Much later in life, of course, I used an inflation calculator to see what those $40 sneakers would cost in today’s money. I redid the calculation this morning and those 1979, $40 sneakers in today’s money would cost $152.39.

It works out to an inflation rate cumulatively of 281%. This put everything in perspective years later. My mother was buying a $152 pair of sneakers for a seventh grader.

Now let’s fast forward to yesterday’s testimony by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell before the Senate Banking Committee. Since months, Powell and the Administration have claimed that inflation is what the country is currently experiencing. “transitory”Or temporary. They’ve kept saying that prices have continued to rise as demand exceeds supply. Powell suddenly changed his mind yesterday.

“I do think that the threat of persistently higher inflation has grown. … But clearly, the risk of more persistent inflation has risen. Therefore, the meaning of transitory can be different for people. To many, it carries a time – a sense of short lived. It is easy to forget about it. [the word transitory] to mean that it won’t leave a permanent mark in the form of higher inflation. I think it’s probably a good time to retire that word and try to explain more clearly what we mean.”

TRANSLATION: “The American people are no longer believing higher prices are temporary and good times and lower prices are right around the corner. They’re not stupid and we need to level with them like adults.” Former Treasury Official for the Obama Administration, Steve Rattner said this last month in an interview. New York Times Op-Ed:

“[I]nflation worries are top of voters’ minds. The result? [Biden]The administration must be honest with the public about inflation impact and spending plans. Build Back Better can be deemed “paid for” only if one embraces budget gimmicks, like assuming that some of the most important initiatives will be allowed to expire in just a few years.”

Due to inflation concerns, the Consumer Confidence Index dropped to its lowest level for nine months in November. The index has fallen four times in the last five month. This is bad news for the Administration. The Carter Administration was very similar to the current Administration. This includes rampant inflation.

Poor leadership and the Iranian hostage crisis were factors in Carter’s defeat to Reagan, but another big factor was rising inflation. Let’s continue to hope that inflation worries also result in the demise of the Biden Administration in 2024.