An easy CPI calculator between two dates

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has a webpage with a very easy-to-use inflation calculator. The two-bedroom home we bought in 1974, adjusted for inflation, would now be selling at $81,177. The gasoline that cost 26 cents in 1967 would be $1.70 now. go see if your salary is keeping up with inflation.

Bank Failure #83 for This Year

Nevada Security Bank, in Reno, Nevada, was closed by the FDIC on Friday. That’s Bank Failure #83 for 2010. At this time last year, there were 40 failures. Looks like my forecast of 150 failures this year, raised from 140 at the start of the year, will be on the low side. Umpqua Bank acquired [...]

Where to go for information on Social Security

I had a class interested in Social Security. The news is very bad. With unemployment so high, contributions to the Social Security “Trust” Fund are down. Instead of deficits beginning about 2016, Social Security outlays might be more than inflow beginning next year. Where to go for information? The Social Security Administration Website is a [...]

Bernie Madoff for Social Security Commissioner

I was teaching Auditing in Fall 2008 when the Madoff story broke. When the students asked what I thought, my first reaction to them was to say, “Social Security is the biggest Ponzi scheme.” The Federal government has made promises it can’t keep. Go to the Financial Statements of the U.S. Government. See p. 41 [...]