Its ‘Greedflation’ Not Inflation

It’s true. You definitely cannot believe everything you see and hear on the internet or television. Not everything is a direct lie, but “the truth lives here” and I must tell you that half-truths are more damaging than blatant lies. If there is any truth at all in the story, you are likely to believe a disguised effort to mislead.

The American people are being told that our country is experiencing inflation. I call bullshit. There is absolutely no proof that the laws of supply and demand are the reason prices on everything have risen to unreasonable levels. This is not inflation, it’s “greedflation.”

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were 614 billionaires in the United States. Today, there are 788 billionaires. Throughout the pandemic more than 2, 200,000 new millionaires were added to America’s total population. The profits of nearly every corporation set records for the two-year period. With America now in recovery, after millions of job losses, and income lost during the unnecessary devastation of the pandemic, pure greed is the only reason for today’s manufactured inflation.

If you are under the age of 60 years of age, you probably don’t remember a time in our nation’s history when an occurrence of this same situation happened, when for no reason, with the exception of increasing profits, the oil companies and several corporations unnecessarily increased their profits by raising prices.

In 1973, I and millions of other Americans were forced to wait in long lines at the pumps to pay bloated prices for gasoline. These greedy companies manufactured a non-existent gas shortage. Other companies followed their lead, including those which produced sugar and coffee. After the end of the “crisis,” if prices were not raised, the content was reduced. A half-gallon of ice cream was reduced to 12 ounces.

The same remains true for a “pound of bacon,” which became 12 ounces. Cereal boxes were the same size, but their content had been reduced by one-third. Even my favorite soap was reduced in size. They made it concave instead of rounded and more convex, reducing the size by about one-third. These are other tactics resulting in greedflation.

The one percent and our largest corporations continue to seek larger profits. Our nation is no longer controlled by simple capitalism, it is undeniably a plutocracy. We are under the complete control of just 3,300,000 men and women who control everything in our lives.

But none of this has been enough. I have a suggestion. We must take our country back. I suggest a two-day boycott. Two days when no one goes to work, or school. Two days when no working-class American spends a single dollar at a store, a movie, a restaurant, or any other venue. Two days when no one boards an airplane or train.

Shutting down the country, knowing it could happen again in the middle of a work week, will send a message which is loud and clear. This is our country, not theirs.

This is not a radical idea, but it is an idea that would work if our people joined together in a true act of courage.

Income inequality is a serious problem, and it will only become worse unless we, the people, refuse to accept being ignored any longer. It could become and should become a new national holiday.

Op-ed by James Turnage, Novelist

Sources:

BBC: Millions become millionaires during Covid pandemic
Forbes: Nearly 500 People Became Billionaires During The Pandemic Year; by Chase Peterson-Whithorn

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Alexas Fotos’ Pixabay Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Sergio D Farias’ Pixabay Page – Creative Commons License