I have the perfect solution to the resource issue.
Data Collection Suspended Entirely
Please consider this Data Collection Notice from the BLS.
BLS is reducing sample collection in areas across the country. In April, BLS suspended CPI data collection entirely in Lincoln, NE, and Provo, UT. In June, BLS suspended collection entirely in Buffalo, NY.
Collection reduction and suspension affect both the Commodity and Services survey and the Housing survey. These actions have minimal impact on the overall all-items CPI-U and CPI-W indexes. The actions may increase the volatility of subnational or item-specific indexes. The number of imputed items increased in April due to these actions.
BLS makes reductions when current resources can no longer support the collection effort. BLS will continue to evaluate survey operations.
The Obvious Solution
The obvious solution is to fire them all. Who needs data collection anyway?
All we have to do is ask Trump what the rate of inflation is, and he will inform the world.
He understands this better than anyone, especially percentage declines.
Trump Cuts Drug Prices by 1,500 Percent
“Trump: You know, we’ve cut drug prices by 1,200, 1,300, 1,400, 1,500%. I don’t mean 50%. I mean 1,400%, 1,500%”
Silly me, I thought the most prices could go down was 100 percent at which point they would be free. I am glad Trump clarified.
Of course, we could be paying people to take drugs. Perhaps that’s what Trump means.
It’s no wonder Republicans will soon be talking about this. It is an amazing achievement.
Thank you President Trump!
Related Posts
August 1, 2025: Payroll Disaster, Jobs Rise 73,000 but Massive Negative Revisions
There were 258,000 negative revisions in May and June.
August 2, 2025: Did Trump Fire the BLS Head for Cause, Being the Messenger, or Something Else?
A case can be made for all three. But there’s a clear winner.
July 31, 2025: No Improvement in the Fed’s Preferred Measure of Inflation for 8 Months
Core PCE is up 2.8 percent from a year ago, no change in 8 months.
The above posts put a huge spotlight on the problem.
We need to ask Trump by what percentage prices have fallen.
I expect some outstanding numbers.
I would be careful in criticizing downsing the BLS. An agency that yes does produce some good numbers, but their CPI calculation is so flawed, frankly it has been so politicized over the last 75 years that it has been rendered useless. I am sure they produce other worthwhile numbers, and probably some other worthless numbers. Might worth looking at it from a calculation to calculation perspective, figuring out what is just tripe, cut those functions, then see what your head count needs to be from there. Do we need a massive reduction in agencies in D.C., yes. Constitutionally speaking at this point it must happen. But you can’t just pull the plug all at once. I long ago began advocating for a 10 percent reduction in agency headcount in order to do it orderly, without completely pulling the plug and shocking the system, and allowing what actually has some merit to be kept/refined. This is not a zero sum game. Is CPI worthless, absolutely, are many of the other numbers that they and other agencies produce worthless, that is also a fact, but not all of what they do is worthless.
Data schmata. Nobody really wants to know.
Perhaps those 3 cities failed to report simply because all commerce in them has come to a complete standstill like many more places?
Here is the White House’s perspective, if anyone is curious: https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/08/bls-has-lengthy-history-of-inaccuracies-incompetence/
Revisions have historically been an issue: https://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cesnaicsrev.htm
Data? We don’t need no stinking data! We have plenty of numbers to choose from.
If the BLS is run like the Federal Retirement system They had 700 people using paper and pencils to do the work a single computer could replace— These Administrative Agencies will be made efficient or eliminated –all for the good
Well when you think in 5d (5 dimensions of dumb) anything is possible. MAGA operations in 2 extra dimensions of extra-sensory dumbness + 3 normal dimensions of dumb.
Once you understand that it all makes sense.
When Trump’s lips move, ideas are come from the other end and combine in the sounds you hear.
he should fire the weatherman. been a too hot summer.
And my banker. The numbers in my account are clearly fraudulent. And the guy that made my gas gauge… why does it always end up showing empty?
Reality is fake news.
Exceptionalism or Excessionalism?
Fast-moving, systemic institutional decay.
When Russia and Germany went for an autocrat, they were coming from financial and war defeat disasters. When the USA went for this, we were prosperous and stable. (I’m not saying the Dems were perfect. I’m saying, relatively.) What we had was not mass starving families, but instead, a bunch of spoiled and dissatisfied brats who wanted more infantile tough-guy action. I could hear them in their comfy well-outfitted dens yelling in chorus with FOX News, at basically media-amplified straw-man “threats” and “enemies.” Congratulations to them! The political system on both sides has now swung into irrationality and instability. I expect similar cartoon characters now emerging on the left.
Conservatives morphed into crybabies, blaming everyone else for their failures. This was our apocalypse.
=war defeat disasters
remind me,when did Russia have war defeat disaster?
i must have been asleep during my hist classes in russian school.
World War 1, Russian Revolution, 1917?
AI summary: “World War I was a disaster for Russia, exposing the weaknesses of the Tsarist regime and contributing to its downfall.The war led to massive casualties, economic hardship, and social unrest, culminating in the Russian Revolution.”
And then followed by the horrific civil war which led to communism. But basically, Russians can’t live with out a Tsar.
Trumps incompetence is a glaring reminder that 70+ million people were stupid enough to vote for a convicted and bankrupt felon. The fact that he is a known pervert and pedophile that stated that he would be “Dictator on day one” does not bother them because reality has been suspended for them. They actually believe that prices can go down 1,500% because they are that stupid!
Morons voted for this vapid idiot!
America may well be lost and our once great nation fall into the very chaos these idiots idolize.
Meanwhile China is increasing its share of global trade and influence.
Trump could not find his asshole with both hands and a mirror!
Frosty, you seem like a very angry person, with an axe to grind or maybe you just like to hear yourself be bombastic.Would it be a bad idea for you to have your own blog and spew hate.
Did Mish tell you he’s unwelcome here? If so, let’s get on with it
Cry more. Your tears are delicious.
I agree with Frosty, but would it be bad to pick a better set of words to get your point across.
Found one of the ones dumb enough to vote team pedarest!
Work with the hand you’ve been dealt; idiots complain, smart people get on with life.
Almost half the votes on your post are from people who swear by the grifter in chief
Pedophilia supporters, each and every one.
I was not stupid enough to vote for word salad Kamala. Wasn’t going to vote for continuation of racist DEI or a continued illegal alien invasion, or men being allowed in women’s sports or private spaces.
We got used to Trump’s exagerations, his lies but it is difficult to accept that he is slowly getting demented just like Sleepy Joe. Joe didn’t pretend that he controlled everything, the country was likely run in concensus by several key cabinet members and Joe had time to take his naps. Trump tries to control and decide everything and if dementia develops as diagnose there may be a big problem.
just hire 100-200 normal families per each state middle or lower income w/ 2*3 kids
and collect all prices they paid each month!
====
pay each family some fin. support,500*1000$ .. as thank you.
That is a common sense solution and I wonder why an agency with a budget of over $700 million couldn’t figure out something like this. Instead they ask for more money.
So let’s gut the data?
Don’t like common sense solutions I see.
You have no sense, common or other wise. You live to serve the Cheeto pedo.
Sometimes you get it right. We’ll, one time.
Once again we see the NY Times studiously avoiding the underlying issue while spouting pro-bureaucracy talking points.
In this case, they ignore the well-documented and long-term incompetence, inefficiency and, yes, bias of the economic data collectors.
Which Mish has often complained about for over 2 decades here. My favorite is the data series that repeatedly bounces up and down every other period, when it shouldn’t. But there are plenty of others.
The way the government generates unemployment and CPI data is decades out of date. The econometric establishment is a national laughingstock.
I don’t approve of the “shoot the messenger” approach to reform, but reform is long overdue. The NY Times does its readers a disservice by not acknowledging that.
=Due to Lack of Resources
why why why we need someone to collect prices and calc price indexes??
we are not talking about 15th century when 99.9999 pct of ppl was just plain idiots
who never opened a book
it is 2025 for god;s sake
====
just hire 100-200 normal families per each state middle or lower income w/ 2*3 kids
and collect all prices they paid each month!
====
pay each family some fin. support,500*1000$ .. as thank you.
btw, we need only families bottom 75% income wise. we dont care how much millionaires pay for private jets, caviar and rolexes!
that is it!!!
alx
Like Nielsen used to do to calculate TV ratings.
We are going to have to 25th Amendment this clown before 2028.
That takes a consensus of top-level political insiders, more so than impeachment. Good luck! Then we get Vance, oboy.
https://ifunny.co/picture/due-to-cut-backs-we-are-gonna-have-to-re-KpEyJhCD7
Be thankful. This is why Vlad is NOT nuking the U.S. – and Europe at the present time. 1000%
You mean Vlad the Impaled?
is vlad in same room w/ you right now.
appears so
No. He is in Moscow getting impaled.
Keep your sexual fantasies to yourself.
I mean impaled in the traditional sense. It was to discourage rebellion.
why would he? europe is dead!!
and USA prints 2$ tlrn per each year to fiance budget
already 30% of budget goes to serve debt
====
USA IS BANANA REPUBLIC ON STEROIDS
in 5 years debt will be 50 trln$
So the last guy on earth to realize regular people were being chopped up in Ukraine — I mean Trump, as informed by his wife — now pivots US policy 180 degrees in a few seconds to what everyone else was saying for years, except in the form of a sudden nuclear standoff fist in Russian faces, gambling with the planet’s future survival from the opposite stance days previously, and this is leadership?
What I see instead is a group of minions who seemingly will defend absolutely whatever the guy tosses up at any moment. Please demonstrate how you are not described by that.
I don’t think prices in Lincoln, Provo or Buffalo move the needle on the CPI.
The BLS methodology for CPI is outdated and inefficient, except at employing data survey takers and “personal visit” data collectors. Or by telephone!! Or manually hunting through websites and apps! LOL.
“Approximately two-thirds of price collection in the CPI is done by personal visits of CPI data collectors to brick-and-mortar stores. The remaining data are collected by telephone or on the outlet’s website and apps.”
Source: https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cpi/data.htm
When there are personnel cuts, combined with make the numbers look good or when that isn’t possible appear less bad, respondents aren’t responding, etc., it isn’t just a few cities that should concern you.
https://www.frbsf.org/research-and-insights/publications/economic-letter/2025/03/do-low-survey-response-rates-threaten-data-dependence/
http://www.shadowstats.com/
The problem isn’t staffing. The problem is continued reliance on voluntary labor-intensive surveys, rather than modernizing to better data gathering methods.
If an organization is not staffed to meet its objectives then they mask the deficiency by incorporating efficiency of a new technology that is sketchy in extrapolating another set of data gathered from another similar source that is also fragmented produced by machine learning this is GIGO.
https://www.bls.gov/cps/methods/response_rates.htm#CPS_response_rate_improvement_plan
https://www.fedweek.com/federal-managers-daily-report/staff-shortages-put-census-bureau-surveys-at-risk-report-says/
https://www.npr.org/2025/05/23/nx-s1-5409331/doge-data-census-bureau
https://www.census.gov/newsroom/blogs/research-matters/2025/bridging-data-gaps.html?utm_campaign=20250805pio&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
That would be GIGO. That’s not what I’m proposing.
it is done by design..
for manipulation
So what is your alternative? Measure prices just in St. Louis and call it a day? Because now you ‘know’ what prices all Americans face each month?
If you personally know “the BLS methodology for CPI is outdated and inefficient”, can you inform the rest of us how you would improve it? Maybe we can all learn something from your expert knowledge; thanks
Standardized online price reporting by all businesses of all product prices. Think “stock market prices”, but for everything. Instant price transparency for all consumers … would be a huge win for everyone.
Taco is a real piece of work. He reminds me of a bull in a china closet.
… if the bull were sessile and morbidly obese.