Reply #61: ITA, Ozy: Stagflation is (kinda) in the eye of the beholder [View All]

Nixon's imposition of wage and price controls proved ineffective as corporations found ways around them, as I recall. (IIRC, today's ubiquitous "rebates" were one of the children of price controls.) The fact that today's wages have little impact on prices -- because U.S. wages aren't making the things we buy in the same way as in the 60s, 70s, or even 90s -- alters the whole mix.

Kevin Phillips points out in "American Theocracy" that Carter's policies in the 70s regarding energy use were extremely effective -- oil importation dropped, homes and appliances became more energy efficient, cars got better gas mileage -- and the economy still grew. At the same time, mortgage rates reached 17%!

So while the details may be different, I think the end result -- serious economic pain for working people -- is what we have to look at, not the semantics.