Everything So Expensive? Why Prices Rarely Fall

Prices are up about 29% since 2020, so will they ever come back down? A calm, data-backed answer, plus the "hours of work" test that shows whether you've really fallen behind. Chapters 0:00 Will prices ever come back down? 0:24 The receipts: prices since 2020 1:17 Speedometer vs odometer: why prices rarely fall 2:48 Has pay kept up? 4:12 Why it feels worse than the data says 5:34 What most people miss: why falling prices are bad news 6:16 The hours-of-work test 7:07 Your homework: are you actually behind? Sources (official data; calculations are Greenback Theory's own) CPI-U, seasonally adjusted: Jan 2020 = 259.127, Aug 2026 = 334.131 (+28.9%): https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CUSR0... Food at home: Jan 2020 = 243.511, Aug 2026 = 321.335 (+32.0%): https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CUSR0... August 2026 CPI (+3.4% y/y; energy +16.3%): https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.... (archive: https://www.bls.gov/bls/news-release/...) 40 of 943 months since 1948 with prices below a year earlier (Greenback Theory count from CPI-U, not seasonally adjusted): https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CP... Average hourly earnings, private sector: Jan 2020 $28.43, Aug 2026 $37.76 (+32.8%): https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CES05... Real average hourly earnings, Aug 2026 (-0.3% y/y): https://www.bls.gov/news.release/real... (archive: https://www.bls.gov/bls/news-release/...) Hours-of-work math: $100 x (334.131 / 259.127) = $128.94; $100 / $28.43 = 3 h 31 min; $128.94 / $37.76 = 3 h 25 min. Fed's 2% longer-run inflation goal: https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/e... Greenback Theory is educational content, not financial advice. Do your own research or talk to a licensed professional. #inflation #cpi #economy