Inflation Depicted As Handy Scapegoat: Standards Rise Also Worse ...
pressuresÛÓthe inability of government to spend more for education, public housing or foreign aid, and for the difficulties many of us experience in paying Christmas bills! and the January 15th installment on our %...</br></br>Prices alone do not determine the cost Û¢ * of living. It's the number and types of things we buy as well. We complain about	j matic transmission, power steering, power HBKp || brakes, tube-like or delta-wing rear fins, dual headlights and white wall tires?	Brown</br></br>Less expensive cars are available, dui 4o per ceni oil FordÛªs output is now of Galaxy models. ChevroletÛªs big I seller, too, is its most expensive line, the Impala. Moreover,! even these models aren't good enough for many who are. hard pressed to pay last monthÛªs bills. They require a car 225 inches long and 81 inches wide with more power, a positive-tractor differential and a transistor radio.</br></br>All the increase in the price of haircuts and dental fillings is often attributed to inflation. This too is wrong. Even if the consumer-price index for all items had not risen I in the Dast 10 vears, such costs would have increased. \ Standards Rise Also</br></br>Many Washington families whose expenditures have risen' 50 to 100 per cent in the past decade may be surprised to learn that the consumer-price index has risen only 19 per cent. It's not just that prices have gone up; itÛªs our standards that have gone up. Inflation is more in the mind than in actual pricing of goods when we pay $5 for a necktie instead of the SI.50 we used to pay.	j