@interfluidity The bit about how workers perceive wage and price increases implies that future policy should be austerian, like what Americans think Germany does (actual Germany did as much stimulus as the US during corona). Fewer raises but workers don't perceive them as policy successes, and lower inflation. It also weakens the stock market because it means lower future growth, so there's less outrage to be had about asset owners.

@Alon asset market prices can rise due socially valuable growth in production, or socially predatory expansion of profits at the expense of customers, workers, or vendors. can’t usefully talk about normatively about asset market prices without distinguishing these things. inflation is a bitch, politically. austerian policy is not usually desirable—better to run an economy hot, from a welfare perspective—but if you’re not in some way managing inflation or perceptions thereof, politics get hard.