That Stagflation Show

That Stagflation Show

Friday's market rout in employment, oil, the dollar and stocks was not the end of the world, but it is a warning. The message is that the current Washington policy mix of easy money and Keynesian fiscal "stimulus" is taking us down the road to stagflation.

News Stories on Stagflation

There seems to be a bull market in stagflation stories these days. A small part of me thinks that this might indicate a top in stagflationary thinking and I should consider changing my name. The other larger part looks to horrible real interest rates. How can THAT make people stop hoarding hard goods? It certainly isn't altering my hoarding behavior anyway. So what is the risk real interest rates will rise? How can they rise much when the housing market is falling apart and there is SO much money looking for safety (or possibly should be looking for safety at the very least)?

Toilet paper continues to appear on my Costco shopping list. I buy it every time I visit the store. So far it has been a decent plan. In addition to the cost of the paper itself rising 5% this year so far, the cost to transport it home continues to escalate. The fewer trips I have to do in the future the better. The employees must think I have serious digestive problems. That's somewhat true. I can't stomach where this economy is headed.