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Comment by cat199 | Hacker News Reader

Depends on what you are buying - relative prices of various goods change over time; many are critical of things like CPI as being a stand in for inflation for exactly this reason

Example:

1970 corvette: $5,192.00 (Coupe), $4,849.00 (Convertible) 2021 corvette: $59,900

    >>> int(10000 \* (59900 / 5192))
    115369

so, using 'a corvette' as the 'basket of goods' has a ~65% higher inflation rate than the inflation calculator, vs for the big mac:

    >>> int(10000 \* (5.66 / .65))
    87076

which is ~24% higher than the 70k you mention.

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> which is ~24% higher than the 70k you mention.

Which is still not 250k.

Either way, I see the point you're trying to make, but when people discuss "how much was X in todays dollars" they don't mean "go find a 'basket of goods' to reflect whatever value they want".

CPI is the go-to measure that is understood. Yes, some things are more expensive relative to CPI (housing, education, medical care), but using a non-standard measuring stick is not intellectually honest (unless you make it clear and disclose your reason for why you think it should be different).

I think it's important to note that a 2021 corvette is not a 1970 corvette. Think of all the additional safety features, the different materials of construction, the vastly better electronics, etc. If you could transport a 2021 corvette back to 1970, there's no way it would sell for only $5,192.

This is actually a serious issue with many products, for example cleaning supplies that are sold for the same price but in different bottles with different internal volumes. Even for something as simple as bread, the average loaf on a modern shelf has many chemicals which would not have been present 50 years ago, and if you do go for a loaf comparable to what used to be available you're paying some markup for "organic" or "artisanal" labelling. Indeed virtually no where can you find a good whose price has not been affected by changes to technology, marketing, customer demographics, supply chains, etc. All of these obfuscate the change in the value of money. A reasonable basket-of-goods comparison requires looking at multiple goods and trying to normalize for all these changes.

Also a Big Mac in 2021 is 3.99. A meal is 5.99, which would have been $1.11 in 1970. Although even here, McDonalds is a very different restaurant now, it's impossible to say how much is inflation and how much is the big mac no longer being one of 6 items on the menu.

> I think it's important to note that a 2021 corvette is not a 1970 corvette. Think of all the additional safety features, the different materials of construction, the vastly better electronics, etc.

This person is clearly neither a car enthusiast not a Corvette collector (e.g. one who determines the price via purchasing)

Paying more for something because it has become a valuable collector item is very much not the same as paying more for something because the value of currency has decreased.

But who buys used cars except for people seeking transportation (honda civic, etc) or enthusiasts? Clearly the former group is not setting the price of sports cars

We're not talking about buying a 50 year old corvette now vs when it was new, we're talking about buying a new corvette now vs a new corvette 50 years ago.

And it doesn't matter if a car enthusiast doesn't care about safety features, if the manufacturer is required to put them in, and they cost money to add, then they affect the price all the same.

Also I used to drive a corvette. It's actually a remarkably practical car for its category - not insanely expensive, low maintenance costs, and good lifetime. It's hardly a super-car intended for a small niche audience (though admittedly not a workhorse).

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