Money For the Rest of Us · Wednesday, July 15, 2026
David Stein asserts that inflation is inherently subjective and can be 'manipulated,' explaining that government statisticians choose specific items to measure price changes. He believes that while not massively manipulated, changes are made to understate inflation, potentially impacting Social Security cost-of-living adjustments and Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS).
“So, yes, is inflation manipulated? Well, of course, it is. Because it's so highly subjective. Then the Consumer Price Index, there are over 200 categories, thousands of items. There are individuals, statisticians that work for the government that are going to the grocery store and they're choosing which item they want to use to measure inflation. It's incredibly subjective.”
“Do I think it's massively manipulated? No. Do I think changes are made to make inflation lower? I do. Now, that's not new.”