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(lemmy.ml)
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this post was submitted on 16 Apr 2024
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Inflation is not just price gouging, but it will almost inevitably lead to price gouging
I mean inflation is literally a product of people who own businesses deciding to raise prices while depressing wages. So, it does largely come down to price gouging in a very real sense.
That's... Not what inflation is. You have been watching half-arsed videos on YouTube by people who never really learned a single thing about economy, haven't you?
Inflation is the devaluation of money which happens because the pool of money constantly grows (super oversimplified here), which it has to because otherwise, we'd face a deflation because the money pool would constantly shrink due to savings and such. Deflations can wreak havoc with economies and cause great misery all around. The "great depression" was a deflation. Look up how that turned out. That's what the constant inflation rates of around 3% are meant to prevent.
There is no cabal of businessmen deciding to raise prices and seoress wages and then selling that as "inflation".
You're correct that inflation is the devaluation of money. The value of a unit of money is represented by what that unit can buy, so the person you replied to is also correct. This is why the most used indicators of inflation are measures of buying power.
If my money is devalued, it means that when I was able to buy 1 gallon of milk, I can now only buy 3/4ths a gallon with the same amount.
So while you're correct in your over simplified example that inflation can be caused by the growth in "pool of money", as you alluded, it is not that simple and its not the only cause. Moreover, inflation still manifests itself in the form of prices increasing. If pool of money grows, but prices remain the same, there's no inflation.
This does not necessitate a "canal of businessmen" conspiring.