## The Substitution Scam

In the 1980s, if the price of steak doubled, CPI went up significantly. In the 1990s, the government introduced "Substitution Bias". Now, if the price of steak doubles, the government assumes the consumer is "too poor to buy steak anymore" and substitutes chicken into the basket instead. Thus, inflation mathematically goes away.

### FAQ

**Q: Why don't 4% raises feel like I'm getting richer?**
A: Because headline CPI uses 'Hedonic Adjustments'. If a Ford F-150 increases in price from $40k to $60k, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will say "Well, the new truck has a touchscreen and lane-departure warnings. Therefore, the truck didn't actually get more expensive, you just got 50% more truck." CPI records the inflation as nearly 0%. Meanwhile, your bank account is missing $20,000. True inflation, calculated using old-school basket metrics, strips away this fiction.