Saturday

Inflation and Random

Hidden inflation actually made it into the MSM this week: Everyday prices are up some 8 percent over the past year. By "everyday prices," the analysis focuses on things we purchase every day, like food and gas. It ignores big purchases like homes and cars. Ron Paul made a similar point to Bernanke this week. If inflation were measured today like it was measured in 1980, we'd be running at nearly 9%. I searched for a counter-argument to the Paul thesis (to wit, that the government is hiding inflation) and found one here. My gosh, I was struck by the vacuity. The gist of the argument: People replace items with cheaper items when inflation hits, thereby reducing the effects of inflation, and therefore the inflation figures need to be adjusted downward. The new way of calculating inflation does this, so it's more accurate. Wow, that's like saying, "When your uninsured house burned down and you had no money to rebuild, you started living in a nice tent. Therefore, it's not really accurate to say you lost your home." * * * * * * * The Brits might claim the new king of roller coasters: The Swarm. During testing, the ride ripped the arms and legs off test dummies. "A team of former British fighter pilots were then brought in as the coaster's preparation neared completion. Mark Cutmore, team leader of the Blades, a stunt pilot organization, told the Metro: 'I am a self-confessed adrenaline junkie, but even as a pilot used to G-force there were some gut-wrenching moments, and I have to admit the near miss element is eye-watering -- you really do feel as if you are going to crash into the structures.'" Link. * * * * * * * Hardywood Gingerbread Stout, Peter Brown Tribute Ale, Milk Stout Nitro, Fat Squirrel. Those are just about half of the odd craft beers featured over here. Fairly interesting stuff. * * * * * * * And if the beers over there aren't adventurous enough for ya, you can try some of these beer mixed drinks, although, quite frankly, I suspect such things are crafted by the hands of Satan himself. although this one sounds pretty good (I used to drink a similar concoction, using two different Leinenkugels beers): "Pour a 1 oz schuss of waldmeister or raspberry syrup into a large wheat-beer glass. Slowly add 16 oz cold Berliner Kindl Weisse or other light German-style wheat beer."