Alison O'Connor: Inflation in US hits harder than gun violence, Ukraine, or climate

Different accent but the same language to US talk of cost-of-living crisis

Even though US gasoline prices continue to drop, general inflation is still high in the US.

You stand and read name after name in the long, long list of the thousands of men who died over centuries. Then you lift your eyes to look out at the very sea that took their lives.

This fishermen’s memorial — littered with names like O’Brien, Kelly, Nolan, McLaughlin, McGrath, Tobin, Costello, Fanning, and Murphy — is located in the fishing port of Gloucester, in Massachusetts. The first settlers from England arrived there in 1623 and, as you read, “sustained by the hope of prosperity”, others followed from Canada, Scandinavia and Ireland and later Italy and Portugal.

This sombre memorial tells of how, of the nearly 1,000 ships lost, in 265 of those the entire crew was lost. It requires a number of plaques to commemorate the loss of those 5,300 men but on the final one you can see the names of the crew of the Andrea Gail, lost on October 31, 1991 and depicted in the movie, The Perfect Storm. There is a Murphy and a Moran among the six names listed.

Walking away from those plaques, and quietly reflecting on the huge loss of life and the cruelty of the sea, it did take a few moments to actually compute the meaning of the text on the T-shirt worn by the woman walking ahead on the promenade.

She is shepherding a toddler. On the back of her black top, in bold white type, were the words: “Since we’re redefining everything this is a cordless hole puncher”, alongside an image of what looks to the untrained eye to be a pistol.

A quick Google later reveals that according to Etsy, “this item had a high sales volume over the past 6 months”, while Amazon has it down as, “Funny quotes about guns”. Yes it’s one of those culture shocks you get when visiting the US but on this visit the other usual differences, especially financial, are far less visible.

Economic hardship

Just like at home, the economic recovery after Covid has followed different rules. In the US, inflation is also a big issue. Gas prices have been falling recently and while unemployment is at a low, people are not seeing higher wages.

There are signs up everywhere for businesses looking for staff. Other signs apologising for delays. Restaurants open only a few nights a week. Unemployment is running there at 3.7%, a 50-year low.

It was interesting to stroll through a Macy’s department store and to see the utter chaos of unsorted clothes, some piled high on the floor in corners.

“It’s sad,” remarked a sales assistant. “We just can’t find the staff”. Black Thursday and Christmas are going to be an interesting experience for the American consumer.

But the single most noticeable thing about being in that country for a few days, and away from this one, was what the media was covering, or rather what it was not.

A vigil last May against gun violence, but now the spiralling cost of living is most Americans' greatest fear. Picture: AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez

There was nothing about how much it costs to boil the kettle for a single mug of tea or any advice on not keeping your mobile phone plugged in to the charger all night. In fact it was fascinating to compare the headlines between the two places, especially given the utter obsession of the Americans with the death of Queen Elizabeth.

“Sadness continues to sweep across Britain,” the TV anchors would intone on the hour, giving details on “the latest step in the late queen’s journey”.

No detail, and I mean none, was too small for the US audience. Ironic given how they fought so hard all those centuries ago for their independence. US flags everywhere, including in car showrooms forecourts, were flying at half mast as a sign of respect.

At the risk of sounding crass at this time of mourning — but here goes — the non-stop sweeping shots of castles, panoramic landscapes and royals in uniform, will surely turn out to be a multi-billion pound boost to the UK tourism industry in the next few years.

The thing is though that Americans are also facing serious cost of living challenges. Although it’s also true to say they do not have a war ongoing on their doorstep at this time or face the energy uncertainty we do for this winter.

A Quinnipiac University poll during the summer did show that Americans were far more likely to cite inflation as the most urgent issue facing their nation rather than gun violence, the Ukraine war or climate, for instance.

Millions do face serious hardship in the upcoming winter. According to the US Census Bureau, the official poverty rate there in 2020 was 11.4%, up 1 point on the previous year. This was the first increase in poverty after five consecutive annual declines. As we already know this is a tough country in which to be poor; getting a serious illness requiring hospital treatment can literally mean bankruptcy.

Only modest drop in inflation

Everyone seemed to be hoping for good news on inflation this week but on Tuesday the latest data showed inflation had not dropped as much as hoped. The figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics had seen only a modest drop to 8.3%, not enough to be noticed by cash strapped Americans.

On the day of the release of those figures there was a professor of business on Fox News advising people to maybe “swap cable for streaming” and to “stock up” as well as joining discount clubs — which did sound like somewhat familiar territory to visiting Irish ears.

It was falling gas prices that proved a major contributor to the small drop that did occur, falling for 13 weeks in a row with an average cost of a gallon of fuel running at $3.71, well below a peak of just over $5 in June. Next week it is widely expected that the Federal Reserve, which had been hoping for a soft economic landing, will impose another rate hike given that inflation is not yet under control.

Tuesday's figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics saw only a modest drop in inflation, not enough for cash-strapped Americans.

Strolling around US supermarkets or other stores, where previously there always seemed to be amazing bargains to be had compared to home, the increases were immediately obvious.

If the economic hardship we face ourselves wasn’t enough, these rises, as well as the euro and US dollar being at par could certainly take the shine off any planned Christmas shopping trips on Aer Lingus to New York.

On the back of that bad inflation news, the US stock markets took a major hit but then President Joe Biden was given a significant boost from an unlikely quarter.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham announced a new bill to ban abortion nationwide after 15 weeks.

His timing and the content drove even his fellow Republicans crazy. It reminded voters of the contentious issue that has lost the party considerable support since the Supreme Court decision to reverse the landmark Roe v Wade judgement in June.

Republicans are currently fighting to win back the House of Congress and the Senate, using those inflation concerns as a key weapon, in the mid term elections.

It’s an interesting time to observe US politics. But back home, as our politicians know, nothing will move the dial on the doomsday economic prospects.

We can only hope it is nowhere near as bad as we’re being told every single hour of every day.