What Is The CPI? The consumer price index (CPI) is a price metric for a market basket of goods and services purchased by US households at a specific point in time. Changes to the CPI are widely used in the US and other countries as measures of price inflation. Along with population growth over time, the trends in CPI are closely watched by national governments throughout the world as critical inputs for economic policy. Positive price inflation decreases our purchasing power for a market basket of goods and services over time while negative price inflation increases that purchasing power. One of the primary charges for the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is to promote price stability. Although a constant measure of CPI ensures price stability, that is rarely optimal for a properly functioning economy and financial marketplace. When prices are dropping (or expected to drop) for goods and services, consumers have an incentive to wait for a lower price in the future. On the fli...

  Boats Before Airplanes It may not come as any great surprise that humans have been getting around on the water using boats for thousands of years. Airplanes are a relatively new innovation that was inspired by watching birds cover great distances in very little time. Thanks to Archimedes principle (circa 246 BC), boats displace a volume of water equal in weight to the weight of the boat. This allows watercraft constructed of various materials (including wood, aluminum, steel, cement, and lead) to float and maintain their stability. Many wonder how airplanes stay aloft just as birds soar above a ridge full of updrafts. Airplanes are designed with a fuselage that carries passengers (or cargo), wings that generate lift, and appendages that provide control. The lift force must be at least as large as the weight force in order to maintain or increase the altitude. This is possible because of a principle called the Kutta condition. The formal definition is that the velocities leav...

  A History lesson It is common practice to make new year's resolutions to turn over a new leaf and make a fresh start for the indefinite future. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln penned the Emancipation Proclamation declaring all person held as slaves within the rebellious states be freed to live life on their own terms. This document solidified the notion that the already war for the Union was becoming more a war for freedom. One aspect of this dynamic was any Confederate region overcome by the Union Army was immediately subject to this proclamation. Liberated slaves often joined the Union Army and Navy to become the new liberators. My own great, great grandfather (Major James Quackenbush Rice) died in the Third Battle Of Winchester on September 19, 1864 fighting for this cause as part of the Union Army. A Slave Ship La Amistad was a 120 foot two masted brigantine schooner owned by a Spaniard and based out of Cuba. Strangely enough, her name means "friendship...

I realize that this title may ruffle more than a few feathers. It is intentionally dramatic and thought provoking. Bitcoin has been all over the news lately after reaching new highs and taking dome deep dives. The Earth keeps turning. And turning. And turning. But that beautifully symmetric pattern is starting to wobble - and we humans may have something to do with this anomaly. Mother Earth First You do not have to be Captain Obvious to realize that Mother Earth came first in the grand chronological pecking order. We have (or perhaps had) everything we need to sustain life on this planet in the form of clean air, fresh water, and radiant sunshine. The fruits of our labor will soon sprout from the ground and we will be rewarded with beauty to the eye, fragrance for the nose, and taste in our hungry palette. We have everything we need for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. As long as we do not destroy it. Bitcoin Distant Second In the event named the 100 Guineas Cup, several s...

Some of us from Generation X or Generation Y may remember the Walt Disney cartoon series that aired every weekend named Looney Tunes. This series was masterfully created in vivid detail using thousands of drawings for each weekly episode. What was perhaps most amazing about these entirely entertaining cartoons is that ALL of the voices were recorded by one person. Mel Blanc was often referred to as “the man of one thousand voices” for his ability to portray almost any character during the golden age of Hollywood. One of Mel’s most dynamic assignments was to bring rifle-toting Elmer Fudd to life as he pursued Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny for a little sport shooting. Watch  HERE . Duck Season? My late father used to hunt ducks with my  grandfather when they lived down in Essex, CT. It was one of their favorite activities during the late fall and early winter as they climbed into their duck boats and paddled through Middle Cove and around Knot Island. My late mother lovingly remarke...

An Ownership Stake When investing in a bond, there is a certain amount of faith that can be placed in the capital markets system in general and the bond certificate buried deep in our grandparents safe deposit box at the local bank. The large black and white words on the certificate describe all the good things that will come to the bondholder and when they can expect their just rewards. The so-called “Murphy’s Law” comes to mind when thumbing through the underlying prospectus where it describes everything that can go wrong in preventing the bondholder from realizing the expected cash flows. Investing in stocks is similar in nature to investing in the bonds of a nation, state, city, or corporation. Capital is pledged to help the entity survive and thrive for a period of time with an expectation that there will be a fair return for the risk taken by the stockholder. That is where the comparison takes a fork in the road, however, because a stock certificate represents an ownership stake ...