"azotic" wrote in message
...

"Winston" wrote in message
...
I could buy a gallon of gas *today* for only 56c if I could
just find one of those 1971 dollars.

--Winston

Fortunatley gas is not included when calculating inflation so
your 1971 dollar is still worth a dollar according to the government.

Best Regards
Tom.

Neither of those statements is correct, Tom. Actually, gas *is* included in
the basic measure of inflation (CPI-U). The figures Iggy posted last night
include gas -- which inflated by 53% last year.

Without fuel or food, inflation last year was 1.7%. With fuel and food, it
was 2.7%. But food prices actually *declined* by 2.4%. All of the difference
between the 1.7% and 2.7% was gasoline prices, which is a function of
politics and the economies of foreign governments as much as ours. That's
why some measures don't include it. It's misleading for some kinds of policy
analysis.

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm

--
Ed Huntress