” the average hourly wage in 1999 was about 13.50
http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/data/AHETPI.txt
and about 18.50 today.
(dont have the link)

$13.50 in 1999 is said to buy $17.53 in 2009 according to http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm

If you go to the website of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve site: http://www.minneapolisfed.org/
it has an price inflation calculation which uses the CPI index. If you plug in 2009 and the cost of a good or service at $100, and then compute for 1913, the calculation shows that the “same” good or service would have cost $4.64 in 1913. This backs up Congressman Paul’s contention.

The best introduction to an Austrian perspective on dollar devaluation is going to be Murray Rothbard’s What Has Government Done to Our Money?

Link:
http://mises.org/books/whathasgovernmentdone.pdf

confused with or part of?

if credit expansion/malinvestment/federal reserve/frb takes place as described by those at mises/lrc and is observed scientifically and produces declining gas prices and you have no way to compare 100 percent reserve commodity money performance in the same way….how is that scientific?

could gold/silver/100 prcnt reserves do better than that?

does declining gas prices…a really swell product to a lot of people, speak of malinvestment as claimed by the mises lrc economizers?

gold or shadow stats.

The belief that these static data have any meaning individually or in the aggregate is a perfect example of the flawed mentality of an empiricist.

The belief that laying out the data across the whole spectrum of goods and services creates a comprehensive picture is nothing but an example of the fallacy of Walrasian empiricism.

So combine the meaninglessness of empirically derived data with more meaningless data (but more encompassing) and poof! two wrongs make a right!

Economic history – comparing a price today versus its counterpart from days past – may be interesting but it is not to be confused with economic science.

The truth that shines out from this evaluation is that the data used by these so-called ‘economists’ require ego-driven interpretation to serve their object, which is ego-driven intervention. At whatever stage in this vain and imaginary process – interpretation or intervention – empiricism is wholly unscientific.

Contrast that with the pure science of real human action. No interpretation or intervention necessary!

Counterfeiting the currency causes the purchasing power to decrease – inflation!

$13.50 in 1999 is said to buy $17.53 in 2009 according to http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm
so depending which basket of vital/popular goods is purchased the wage seems to have exceeded the cpi.

some other source?

if you bought the stock and sold it the next day…198.10…i dont know what apple stock will do ten years from now.

the above information is probobly pretty easy to verify. i assume its true.
why is it that gasoline when adjusted for inflation still isnt near 1980s highs?
although i remember in my area right around gulf war 1 the gas dropped to around .85 per gallon for a short while.
what have average wages increased by?
they didnt include an average labor price.
many of the staple food and electricity were in the30+ to 40 range..some much less about 3.5 percent per increase per year? is that about in lockstep with wage increases?
after rent/mort i thought that energy and food took the greatest share of income…have those items moved pretty mcuh with wage increases…or fallen?
could gold/silver/100 prcnt reserves do better than that?

Why?

If the CPI has any utilitiy, it is completely abrogated by the political manipulations.

http://consumerist.com/2009/10/northern-hopes-you-dont-notice-your-shrinking-toilet-paper.html#comments-content

The price is higher too.

Anyone who shops for household goods knows damn good and well that there’s a great deal of price inflation out there and the government figures are nothing but lies.