So what has changed since 1982?
The news of the highest inflation rate since 1982 at 7%. But this isn't 1982 copied.
In 1982 there were "counter" things taking place---case in point---real estate was depressed because the mortgage rates were out of site (14%+).
Inflation always hurts those that can least afford another hit---they are consumers of basic sustenance and housing with little beyond life's necessities. It hits them full force, without an increase in income they are forced to reduce the costs of goods and services by an amount similar to inflation.
For the affluent, the impact is moderated and often reversed because the "norm" is that interest rates rise, which can offset and even exceed their increase in cost of living. At the same time, items that are often bought on margin fall because of the high interest rates---real estate being the most common.
In 1982 & (3) we bought the house we now live in---at a price that was 62% lower than what it had listed for 1 1/2 years earlier---and took a 14.5% rate mortgage---my father was certain I needed to be committed. That mortgage got redone numerous times and ended up less than 4% before being retired.
And that is an example of where this occurrence of inflation differs widely---the interest rates have not responded in the same way. Real estate remains high and mortgage rates are low---something that I simply do not understand.
The same paltry interest rates apply to cash reserves, another former offset for the more affluent.
As for the politics of it----the writing was on the wall :shrug:
