Rising Prices and Falling Values—Inflation and Social Decay

International Man: Whether it’s at the grocery store, the mall, restaurants, or airports—anywhere you turn—people are finding inferior goods and services at higher prices.

Living standards have taken a big step backward recently and are trending even worse.

What is really going on?

Doug Casey: There’s an inclination on the part of people to blame the producers of products—the butcher, the baker, and the gasoline maker—but that’s actually very silly, insofar as these people create real wealth.

Th...