For years, Federal bureaucrats have manipulated the Consumer Price Index in order to hide the true rate of inflation. Fortunately, for those looking for a measure of inflation that cannot be manipulated, Charles Hugh Smith of the Of Two Minds blog, has developed: the BPI (Burrito Price Index):
Since we keep detailed records of expenses (a necessity if you’re a self-employed free-lance writer), I can track the real-world inflation of the Burrito Index with great accuracy: the cost of a regular burrito from our local taco truck has gone up from $2.50 in 2001 to $5 in 2010 to $6.50 in 2016. That’s a $160% increase since 2001; 15 years in which the official inflation rate reports that what $1 bought in 2001 can supposedly be bought with $1.35 today. If the Burrito Index had tracked official inflation, the burrito at our truck should cost $3.38—up only 35% from 2001. Compare that to today's actual cost of $6.50—almost double what it “should cost” according to official inflation calculations. Since 2001, the real-world burrito index is 4.5 times greater than the official rate of inflation—not a trivial difference. Between 2010 and now, the Burrito Index has logged a 30% increase, more than triple the officially registered 10% drop in purchasing power over the same time.
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