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Comment by simonblack | Hacker News Reader

Of course we are.

To be the equivalent of a 'traditional millionaire' these days, we'd need to be a lot 'richer' and have at least 50 million dollars.

Inflation has evaporated the buying power of the present-day dollar to about a miserable 2 cents of a 1960 dollar.

Did you know that back around the mid-1960s a blue-collar working man on the Ford assembly line reached a wage of $100 a week? In today's money, he'd need to be earning five grand a week to be on the same wage level as his grandfather.

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$100 in 1960 is close to $1000, not $5,000 today

That's inflation, GP is referencing purchasing power.

But inflation is measured by normalizing purchasing power across multiple categories.

If you look at wages compared to cost of living in 1960, you'll find the average ford line worker would have a similar quality of life to someone who makes $4000/week in today's dollars. Look at what food, rent, gas, and real estate used to cost

You keep believing that. I suppose you also believe the 'official' CPI increases too.

Forget the numbers that are disclosed. Just look at what the prices are for equivalent things. And work out the 'true' inflation rates.

For instance, look at the price of a barrel of oil then and now. or the price of an ounce of gold then and now.

Or even equivalent manufactured items. Like , for example, the price of a Rolex watch in 1960 versus the price of a Rolex watch in today's dollars.

Prices of equivalent items, then and now, maintain a fairly good relativity. Especially when you price those items in terms of gold. Look at the price of oil, say, in terms of ounces of gold and you will find it's more constant than you would think.

Just like probability depends on prior personal knowledge, inflation depends on personal earning power and demand. The same reality can be inflationary and deflationary to different people depending on who they are , what they can do, and what they want to buy.

Bayesian inflation anyone ?

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