I've stopped consuming anything unnecessary and realized I don't dream of labor. The greed and corruption in this country is depressing. I'm going to just keep playing my guitar and reading my library books.

I've been saying this for years. It's the same thing that happened during the last recession. The dollar "stabilized" yet prices never rolled back and corporations continued to rake in profits. But every time I would try to tell people they would look at me with blank stares or ignore it. It's infuriating to watch this happen again.

It's hard to predict the future until we see this month’s inflation results. However, historical data consistently show that stocks tend to outperform bonds in the long term. Therefore, I'm staying in the market and focusing on selecting high-quality stocks. The challenge lies in identifying these stocks.

I am SO glad that you're calling this out. There's one thing you didn't point out. Monopolistic behavior also reduces workforce competition, and there is lessoning incentive for corporations to provide reasonable pay and benefits to their employees. I wish that people would pay attention to what's happening behind the curtain instead of the prestidigitation that's being put on stage.

I've said something like this for years . When people say raising the minimum wage leads to inflation I point out prices keep rising without raising it. Failure to actually bring corporate power to heel is the real problem.

There's a reason why corporations have been broken up in the past.

2 years ago, I told others that the whole thing with toilet papers & sanitiser shortage is a lie & being done on purpose to jack up the prices of those things and guess what? I was told that I'm a mad conspiracy theorist. It feels so good now to be proven that you were right the whole time.

Thanks for this amazing information !! If you don't find a means of multiplying money, you will wake up one day to realize that the money you thought you had, has finished. Investment is key, I pray that anyone who reads this will be successful in life

I believe the one thing that corporations fear more than anything else in this area is organized labor. I work as a trucker in a Teamster Union shop and it is so sickening for me to hear about the abuse of non-union Truckers.

Thank You I've been saying this for months. These companies are gouging people. Remember when they were pushing there's not enough truck drivers? It turned out to be a lie.

Considering the prevailing inflationary conditions, it appears improbable that the stock and housing market will register substantial gains in the immediate future. Therefore, it is advisable to temper one's expectations and acknowledge the potential length of the market's recovery period. It is my professional opinion that it would be prudent to defer any significant investment decisions until the economic environment stabilizes in areas of concern. Until then, exercising caution and refraining from engaging with the current turbulence would be the most judicious course of action.

As I started watching your video, I suddenly understood the title perfectly; yes, I am being lied to about inflation.

Our electric bills here in Maine just went up by 88% because the natural gas supplier doubled their prices, knowing it's winter and we have no choice.

These corporations need to be broken up, or make it much more difficult to buy smaller competitors otherwise there's no way out of this.

Fight inflation by taxing the rich. Seriously, that makes total sense from a monetary POV (classical or MMT) and from the behavioral POV

The narrative of the government printing money is overwhelming. Corporate wealth concentration is rarely mentioned. Nicely done!!

This is so depressing! I’ve known this from the 80’s but what can most people do about it? Corporations have bought out congress and congress is supposed to represent us.

They need to break these companies up. There has to be real competition for an economy structured like this to work the way it needs to. Cap the CEO pay at a 150x what their lowest paid worker makes too. Actually screw it. Throw them all in prison for the financial crimes they all commit daily, and spend the money to make life better for people who actually *work.* You know, those essential jobs that the upper class people belittle as *non-skilled labor,* yet the country would collapse without.

Well said Robert 👏🏼🇺🇸💙

Finally!! someone who's trying to explain the root causes of price increases.

The lockdown illuminated an important fact to me: I have little to no need for many of the items I used to buy without second thought. Restaurants, fast food/coffee, impulse purchases, bad movies…etc, etc, etc. A massive chunk of our economy is devoted to items and events nobody actually needs or remembers once the wrapping is thrown away. And this stuff is pricey. I saved hundreds of dollars a month, primarily by curtailing entertainment and dining. I don’t miss it a bit and almost none of it was worth the pre-lockdown dollars paid.

Absolutely correct. I've been saying this to everyone I speak to. So many people are misinformed.

THANK YOU!!! Growing up in an American school district, I was fed the old “well inflation comes from higher demand” cop out constantly, even by personal finance teachers. It never made any sense to me how we the people are to assume that all corporate businesses are 100% honest and fair in their dealings, when historically it’s been proven that many have not been.

You know what gets me the most? At one time a minimum wage job that payed way less than today's minimum wage was enough for a person to afford a decent life. Now even making more than a doubled, tripled etc minimum wage is not enough some places. Leaving many who use to live in houses and apartments and still more who are just starting out with little choice but living in cars RVs or even becoming homeless despite working and not being irresponsible ( I didn't say anything about wanting a lavish life for minimum effort. Just some semblance of decency -> because I work and earn my way I deserve SOMETHING BETTER THAN LIVING IN SQUALOR for my efforts). And yet people defend the continuously rising cost of living (inflation) and accuse those who struggle. It's almost like people have been brainwashed to think the very inflation that puts the cost of living out of reach of more and more people is a good thing (except it only benefits the rich) and are in denial about how inflation can actually have a negative effect even on decent respectable people. Like, it can't have anything to do with the individuals countries and corporations that are buying properties and raising prices to unaffordable levels screwing elderly retirees families with kids etc out of house and home. Yeah let's not pay any attention to that and just curse those who are struggling DESPITE BEING RESPONSIBLE DETERMINED WORKING PEOPLE. LET'S INSTEAD SAY THEY SHOULD ALL JUST GET BETTER JOBS OR MOVE BECAUSE THEY DON'T MATTER AND OF COURSE THEIR ALL JUST CARELESS LAZY FOOLISH ETC. NOT. One problem with that thought. There are MILLIONS maybe billions of people who are struggling or worse. How exactly are they all supposed to get better jobs? Just how many better jobs do you think there are for them to get? Not as many as people who need them. Once more robots and automation are starting to take over jobs. Lastly, what happens if All the people who work the factories run the stores restaurants and take your trash do somehow get better jobs? Fewer clothes phones or toys etc etc because there are no more factory workers, fewer stores and restaurants because all the people who used to run them no longer do and best of all you have to take your own trash to the dump in your car. The truth is you need people to work these lower paid jobs so you can have your convenient life and they have to exist somewhere. If they can't afford a place on minimum wage they have to live on the streets in cars RVs etc or in your words move elsewhere leaving you to take care of your own trash sweeping mopping dusting. restaurants and stores?... Forget about it. All the people who you are telling to move are the people who work and run them so if you like the stores either make room for people living on minimum wage or or forget the stores because the people who you are telling move will if they follow your advice leave you're stores empty and out of business.

I wish more people saw this. I wish more people remembered their high school history and economics classes. Thanks for the video.

We are being scammed and let to believe it is our own fault. Wow these corporations are powerful and have no moral restriction at all.

Robert Reich is a man to be listened to

The thing we need to remember that after the next revolution, and all the dust has settled and man is starting to reemerge from years of war, is that a pound of gold will be valued less then a pound of bread, the fact that we put more value on coal and oil, over clean air and water is a shame on humanity ,

We need a 21st Century Teddy Roosevelt.

I have been saying for years that, even if there isn't any *actual* collusion amongst corporations, they all have leadership (and political support) that knows how to play the game, rig the system in their own favor, etc. They're just all using the same tools to get similar results, no literal conspiracy required. >; /

IKR, when a regular food item purchase for years at 14.95 goes up to 24.95 over the course of one week, that's not inflation, it's theft.

The recent inflation is not only caused by the lack of competition. It's caused by the lack of morals and unchecked greed on the part of upper management in thousands of US corporations. The three most successful, innovative, and powerful business leaders in American history - Vanderbilt/ railroads, Carnegy/US Steel, Rockefeller/Standard Oil all made vast fortunes. All three of them gave away more than half their immense wealth to create foundations and charities still in existence today. These men gained riches, but also gave back immense riches to the benefit of all Americans.

Inflation is the wealthy man’s way of keeping you down. Ever wonder why the corporations and wealthy got covid cash in more substantial amounts and PRIOR to the paltry checks the people got? To set up shop without competing for those purchases (stock buyback) so when you get your check they charge you more and make more because of the buyback. How to penalize gouging? Jail time which will never happen, so taxes is the remedy.

Rule #1: "Once you have their money, NEVER GIVE IT BACK." (Ferengi Rules of Acquisition)

Robert is a genius on many subjects.

Thank you for the truth, Robert! You lay things out so perfectly. I get more knowledge watching a 2-minute video from you than the media all day long. 😁😁

Makes me so mad how often I have to explain min wage has literally nothing to do with inflation

Power and greed will be the demise of America and humanity!!!

"They're using their profits to line the pockets of major investors and executives" I'd have to say executives but recently, not so much, investors. Not now. Look at the stock market. I invested heavily in the stock market and benefited in the short term, from corporate power concentration. But in the long-term, investors will too ultimately suffer from this, due to a weaker overall economy which results from this corruption.

Thank you for this excellent breakdown, Robert Reich. I, for one, am listening. Kurt Anderson’s book Evil Geniuses about corporate take-back of power starting 1979-1980 describes their multi-decade plan for accomplishing what they have done.

The cost of meat at the grocery stores in my town has doubled! Not only that, if you ask for 1 lb. of hamburger at the meat counter, they usually give you 1 1/4 lbs. At $4.99 per pound, somebody is making a LOT of $. (And it's not me!) So, I still can't figure out how Social Security can get away with leaving out the cost of food when they determine the cost of living every year. There are 3 things that humans absolutely must have to survive: oxygen, food, & fluids. So, how can the most expensive thing of the three not be included as a cost of living? 🤔

Give people the power to say no to harmful corporations! No more evictions from primary residences!!

Thanks Mr Reich (and crew) for your sane perspective, and sharing it. I am reminded of a quote of Abraham Lincoln's speech to the Illinois Legislature January 11, 1837 "..These capitalists generally act harmoniously and in concert to fleece the people; .." Capitalism and its regulation doesn't have to be cruel and unfair to all concerned. I think it was working much better for the people and the whole U.S. economy in the 1960s and 70s. It seems our legislators weren't so influenced and bought off back then as now.

Nationalize massive corporations so they can be democratically regulated. If they were more decentralized in a market setting they would be significantly more inefficient, and prices would rise. Keeping them democratically regulated would be both efficient and give the same effect as competition.

Yes, very simple - if costs and inflationary pressures were he cause, corporate profits would not increase - at least not at such obscene levels.

They are always pushing some story to justify them raising the price.

I would argue that the corporations started the inflation in order to create an excuse to raise prices.

Most economists confirm that biggest driver of inflation is government spending.

Inflation had been occurring in sneaky ways prior to the pandemic (e.g., a product that used to contain 18 pieces, now has 16 for the same price). I know for a fact that Amazon has been price gouging during the pandemic. Being one of the very few sources that will deliver groceries purchased with EBT/SNAP (delivery cost is not included), they have jacked up their prices to double or more of a food item's worth (e.g., a five pound bag of flour for $10 which at the local market is less than $5). Lack of competition is a big factor in this also. Walmart (the other major supplier of delivered EBT/SNAP groceries) surprisingly has not jacked up their prices. Now Amazon has announced that they are raising the price of their Prime program, citing increased labor and transportation costs (all of which is tax deductible). I think that they figure the pandemic will end soon and people will no longer pay their inflated prices for groceries, so they need another way to ensure their profit margin does not decrease. OR, maybe, just maybe, some states have taken notice of the price gouging and have hinted at taking action against Amazon for this theft.

When I find myself partially agreeing with Mr. Reich, I know I've lost it. Yet, he is right (at least in part). Chickens aren't rare, yet the price of fryers has increased more than 100% in the last year, while the prices paid to those of us who farm has not increased. He is bringing important dialog to this topic and I thank him!

The laws of the market don't apply when competition is eliminated.

So wait... the solution to inflation is expanding government oversight of corporations?

The party of greed won't go down without a fight. I've reached the point of believing that only a collapse and restructuring like occurred after the Great Depression will lessen the damage. Greed has been taught and programmed into the Corporate System for too long.

I have been talking and writing about just that for almost seventy years. Glad to hear someone telling the truth.

The problem is how to make the voters understand the mechanism that causes this inflation

Well done, Dr. Reich. Thank you.

I'm getting really tired of every economic problem being "fixed" by exploiting the labor class. Where's our bailout?

I remember the gas price wars in the 60's. My dad would drive for blocks to look for the cheapest price.

It's not just record profits that are the problem, it's record profit margins to boot.

Robert Reich is the Obi Wan of economists! The Force of speaking truth about power and greed will be with you...always...Sir.

Thank you again, Professor Reich, for blowing away the strawman of inflation.

Anyone who has lived through the mid-70's understood monopoly and oligopoly-based inflation by living through the OPEC manipulated oil crisis. Robert Reich is spot on, and has many schools of economics, and economist that backs him. It is a sure sign of Monopoly and Oligopoly driven inflation when companies have "There best year ever!" There is no competition keeping prices low. It is also a sure sign of collusion when groups of monopolies (oligopolies) all raise their prices at the same time! (Coke and Pepsi). It means they discussed it (colluded) perhaps at a golf game what they were going to do. The problem is when concentration occurs it can be used as political weapon as well. They can decide to raise rates when someone they don't like is in the Presidents seat and lower it when someone they like is. Thomas Phillapon has a new book out called "The Great Reversal" that just breaking up Monopolies and Oligopolies to the 1984 levels would 1) Lower prices by 5-10% saving 300 a month average household. 2) GDP would increase by 1 trillion. 3) Our wages would rise by about 14,000 a year per person. Canada has a branch of Government called "The Competition Bureau" There job is to force companies to compete. Food for thought. Here is another interesting graph by Pew Research that talks about purchasing power since 1964 that I found most interesting. www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/07/for-most-us-workers-real-wages-have-barely-budged-for-decades/

There’s inflation and low wages and corporations are making record profits. Who’s not shocked!?!

It's easier to stop competing and just agree to raise prices. It benefits all companies at the cost of the consumer. Gotta love human values

You have the best government of the corporations, by the corporations, and for the corporations. There can be no doubt about it! You are No.1!

It is well excepted that big business is responsible for 60% of current inflation. There are only 4 companies who own 80% of the beef industry

"Robert!" What a wonderful man you are. No bull? No razzmatazz ; just simple solid economics, navigational skill of language, and human perception of (where the money actually goes)? How you manage to keep your Witts about you after the economic / political / seditious madness of the (previous maladministration) is a work of art. You've kept us all from jumping off the deep end metaphorically speaking of course. Robert Reich never looses his cool. Far as I know? Never doubt it! The (free educational reality) you share with millions; may be the very thing that saves our country from : radical right wing, radical religious, radical fascist, book burning barbarian nightmare growing like a disease. Not much different than the 1930s in so many sickening ways as things look from where I sit. More than any of us could bare? It's the "(madman's)" image for himself in his delusions. This is what he fantasizes about above all else. (Dump) and his lies are (insane). They are prosecutable beyond doubt. A continuation of the original insurrection incited by him beyond any reasonable doubt. They are the very definition of treason a direct fatal barbaric attack on (the duly elected body) and the constitution, the representation chosen by the people? What could be simpler? Call the fascist lunatic what ever one wants, Nazi, Supremisist, opportunist , mobster wannabe? He's restrainable by any sensible standard of public safety, as dangerous as any Russian spy, any foreign terrorist, or domestic mobster wannabe. Sensible constitutional, self defensive drastic action must be taken to avoid the destruction to our credit, our children's future, the lives of the elderly, and disabled. Only a barbarian lunatic can't see the sanity in that. There is no more possible excuses, for the oligarchs "none"!

I didn't realize Bernie Sanders had a younger brother! Fascinating.

When I was a kid, many decades ago, the entire story of capitalism that we were taught was that it was driven by *competition!* Today, the narrative is to praise the consolidation of industry and eliminate competition. People naively believe that corporations have the best interests of their customers at heart (even as Karens are flipping out in stores). These proud "free-market capitalists" nonetheless do not *want* a "free-market". But, even as they warn about the dangers of creeping "communism", their solution to higher consumer prices is *always* the *government!*

Yes, this is exactly the type of information we need to get out to the people! Excellent job explaining this topic and I agree with everything you stated. I may have to reference people to this video in the future. Thanks!

Every time I watch Roberts videos I go through the 5 stages of grief.

Costs went up, corporate profits skyrocketed! There is NO inflation, only greed, theft, & gouging.

Please keep them coming Bob. Thank you very much for sharing all you do. I learn a ton from you and look forward to all of your new content. Thanks again.

Exactly! Fun fact, if you drink one soda a day and change nothing else, you will gain on average 15 lbs a year. Drinking sugar water does nothing good for you or your children. I haven't had a soda in over 20 years and my weight, health and budget has only benefited from getting rid of empty carbonated sugar water in my diet.

Meanwhile, however, the consumer's purchasing power is deminishing, due to higher inflation.

*I'm Subscribed Now!! Thank you!* *I''m studying global economics to understand where all of the federal tax is going. People are suffering in North America and other nations.*

I wish I could show this to the customers I check out at the grocery store I work at. You'd be amazed by how many of them tell me their higher grocery bill is because Joe Biden.

Great job on that monopoly board graphic. I think that visual aid could have legs, like fleshing out the utilities, the chance deck..🤔 Anyways really great work by all involved, especially the editor/artist

Totally agree with you, we are living it in real estate as construction companies are increasing prices from January to September by 22% or more under the pretext of rising oil and oil is already low and they continue to rise!

They should make it so that companies cannot buy out other companies. That’s what’s happening.

Part of the problem is certainly lack of competition. The reason there is a lack of competition is because politicians work hand and glove with lobbyists and corporatists at the expense of everyone else. This has nothing to do with capitalism. In fact this is exactly the opposite of free exchange. If you are like me, and want a world with many more small businesses you should certainly be in favor of freedom, and synonymously; free exchange. Robert Reich is correct that there is lack of competition. He is wrong in his solution to this problem, he wants more government control, which is exactly what created the problem to begin with.

Love Robert! Realistic and down to earth!

Best answer is to take away their customers by reducing our insatiable desire for things.

Good video. Robert Reich was always on the ball .

The lack of knowledge and insight concerning their own economic system among most Americans, including politicians is frightening. Thank you, Prof Reich for working to change that. But unfortunately the people who should listen to you have not subscribed to your channel. And Democrat politicians aren't either, it seems.

this guy is literally speaking the words out of my mouth. subscribed.

Being in a soup kitchen line with Jeff Bezos in front of me and Elon Musk behind me, priceless.

When companies once took pride in their product, is now pride in profit.

This shines light on why I wish we had an economy with no large corporations and no chain establishments and just a large cluster/large diversity of multiple small businesses, where every business is mandated to stick to only one or two locations and make it work.

I wish there was something any of us could do. Vote vote vote they say! But when we do, no matter what, the politicians just do what they want to because they are in bed with corporations. My hope that things will get better is at an absolute low right now.

Yep.... Funny how when eggs were at 5 bucks a dozen and media reported a 63% profit increase they all of a sudden went down again. I paid 1.24 last week. Same eggs, the only thing missing was the gouging from the egg companies.

Never stop what you are doing Mr Reich.

When a factory churns out millions of boxes of product each month, its owners will then agressively figure out ways to produce slightly less product while charging the same price hoping buyers don't notice. Because even a half percentage cost savings will pay the owner a shitload of money. This repeats until the product is a shadow of its former self.

Anti trust across the whole monopoly board, not just the oil companies. Corporate power pushed us into chaos.

The truth, and nothing but the truth !!!! Excellent channel !!! Keep up the good work !!! 😊

Spot on. Consumer spending is not driving inflation. So punishing regular people by making money more expensive to borrow does nothing to reduce real factors pushing prices up and driving inflation. It’s mental.

That all could be true for the big companies, but a lot of smaller business are ending up under the bus. The little guys can’t absorb the costs of things like wage increase legislation, even if a big company could. I’ve also heard of places like Starbucks coming in next to a small business coffee shop, cutting their prices to drive the little guy out, and when the little guy goes under, raising those prices back to match with the rest of the chain. With gas prices on the rise, I keep wondering if there’s ways we the people could find alternatives to the corporate monopolies. I want to be able to say no to the high prices, but I'm stuck having to do things like drive to work. In fact a lot of the essential products are extremely centralized, or depend on monopolized products to survive.

I had a feeling this was happening. It’s like if your competitors is raising prices. Why wouldn’t you if people are willing to pay a quarter more for soda or any product. It’s like everything is consolidating. From social media platforms, to movie studios. Think about the only reason we have Snapchat, tiktok is because they refused to sell to Meta.

The problem is the murderous monetary system itself !

I noticed this trend in the 80s when small businesses were going bust to large companies like Walmart and such... I worried those small business owners would not be making the same as their large competitor employees in 20 years time... I was right it seems.