JakeS:

the real inflation is whatever the inflation is

That begs the question of that "inflation" is. And most definitions of inflation are circular or "fudge-factor" definitions, where all we have is a disparate collection of price and volume series and it's by no means clear that there is an index that captures it.

By laying out pros and cons we risk inducing people to join the debate, and losing control of a process that only we fully understand. - Alan Greenspan