“Dear RS, your post blames inflation on the republicans, especially the ‘neocons’.”

They’ve been in power for the last six years, and we went from a surplus in 2000 to record debt in 2007, while the dollar has dropped like a rock, inducing inflation — who should I blame?

“The democratics are just as much to blame.”

Some of them are, it’s true.

“Look at Carter and his double-digit inflation as a result of LBJ’s Vietnam War, for example.”

Refer to Greyhawk’s history lesson above. Our involvement in Vietnam actually started after WWII. The Allies had made an agreement with Ho Chi Minh to give Vietnam independence if Ho’s forces fought against the Japanese. They did and we reneged after the war ended, handing Vietnam back to France. Then the French were defeated at Dien Bien Phu in 1954, and Eisenhower began secretly sending arms and ‘advisors’ in Nam; Kennedy continued Ike’s involvement, but planned to draw down forces after the 1964 election. After his assassination, LBJ expanded the war, as did Nixon. BTW, did you know that Ho was not origianlly a Communist? The outline for his government was based on the US Constitution, until we dumped on him by giving his country back to the French.

“Ron Paul (one of the people you are obliged to hate with all your heart) took Bernenke to task for allowing inflation at all!”

I may not go along with everything Ron Paul says, but I certainly don’t hate him. I agree with him about having a smaller government with a balanced budget that isn’t engaged in foreign wars. I part ways with him on abortion, and I think, in the richest country in history, we can provide adequate health care to our citizens and our vets, and a good retirement for our old folks, even if it means one less overpriced military boondoggle like the V-22 Osprey or the Star Wars missile defense system. Like Jefferson, I also think we need decent free public education in order to have a democracy.

“And he’s right. Only the fed govt benefits from inflation, not the neocons, not the democratics.”

Right now Bush’s cronies benefit from inflation as they convert their currencies. They also benefit form all of the corrupt no-bid contracts they enjoy. And, yes, they are all the definition of neocons.

“We need a non-inflating dollar. We’ve had it before we can have it again.”

Keep dreaming, Grim; we’d have to go back to the gold or silver standard, and I don’t see that happening in the near future — we don’t have enough gold and silver, for one thing.