Post #4616089 · Elektrine

2026-08-28 02:15 UTC

No Such Thing Text What’s happening: The idea that corporate greed, or “greedflation,” is the cause of persistent inflation is making the rounds again, so it’s worth reiterating the obvious: there is no such thing as “greedflation.” The facts: Inflation is caused by clear and well-understood economic factors that stem from supply and demand. Prices rise when we have too many dollars chasing too few goods and services. There is nothing more complicated to the story than that. During the pandemic, we had a limited supply of goods and services coupled with an increase in demand. Prices rose as a result, but that effect was short-lived. It faded once the economy began reopening. The Fed’s role: The more long-lasting effect of inflation is the Federal Reserve’s (the Fed) expansion of the money supply. This expansion of the money supply was well above any increase in the size of the economy, hence too many dollars facing too tew goods and services. The persistent inflation we are experiencing now is from that expansion. The slow reduction of inflation coincides with a declining money supply, which takes time to achieve. This is not to criticize the Fed’s COVID-era monetary policy. It had to do what was necessary to stop a financial crisis while the world dealt with a pandemic. Unfortunately, the timing for unwinding those actions got away from the Fed for a variety of reasons, including how long the virus lingered and the size and timing of the fiscal response to COVID.

Replies (6)

@rockSlayer@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2026-08-28 03:29

Oh ok, so then what your saying is that the system is designed to fuck people over

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@Dzheyk@sh.itjust.works 2026-08-28 03:37

Hey…hey…you can go fuck right off with that bullshit.

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@jtrek@startrek.website 2026-08-28 03:28

This is a joke, right?

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@db2@lemmy.world 2026-08-28 03:47

There is no war in Ba Sing Se

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@haywire7@lemmy.world 2026-08-28 07:24

Inflation is the single biggest issue in the system imho Inflation is why shareholders expect more money this year than last year, so companies do shitty things to squeeze money out of a company for them. Doing the same thing year on year doesn’t always mean you get more. Take farmers, they aren’t getting more for milk or grain year on year. The companies that process those things have been pushing up prices and squeezing the farmers that are paying more for feed, fuel and other things though. Companies existing just to service investors and shareholders is destroying everyday life as they try to min-max there way through. Water companies on the verge of collapse as lack of investment catches up with them. Shrinkflation in products we buy and use. Examples are everywhere but the “experts” are still taught from the same books written 50 years ago. Theory of economics is just a theory, try looking at what is happening out there for a while instead. /Rant over

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@hperrin@lemmy.ca 2026-08-28 07:27

It’s so truuuue!! Just think of those poor RAM manufacturers who used to be able to charge $20 for a RAM stick. Now they have to charge $400 for the exact same stick!! Their costs are exactly the same, but those nasty economic factors are forcing them to raise their prices to the maximum amount people will pay. Oh, those poor poor rich people. 😭

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