[The Contrary Farmer, Gene Logsdon writes:] One of the biggest laughs of the last decade or so has been the way our vaunted economy has “licked inflation.”  Every time we took another lick off of the delicious ice cream cone, the price of farm land leaped another lick higher. Every time the Federal Reserve licked interest rates lower, the price of houses jumped another lick up. Every penny “saved” on interest meant two or three pennies spent on construction that became a colossal loss when the owner could not make payments. We licked inflation so well that the price of corn went to historic highs this year, dragging food prices up with it. Fertilizer costs have spiked 18 percent recently according to the latest report.

Even when manufacturers purportedly “hold the line” on prices, inflation wins. The hoe you buy today for nearly the same price as the one you bought fifteen years ago will need repair or replacement twice as soon which means that the inflation occurs not only in your wallet but in the increasing height of the landfill.

Or, what is very prevalent right now, the manufacturer holds the line on the price, but when you check the package, it holds somewhat less than it did previously.