[ericras]

Not really increasingly expensive. For example, a TV is actually a lot cheaper (not to mention better) than it used to be.

We have/want more stuff then people in the past. Houses are larger. Families have more cars, more clothes, more toys, etc. Plus things that didn't exist like cell phones and internet access.

[VLM]

That's a macro vs micro problem. On a macro level it doesn't matter how many greenbacks or grams of gold or seashells or BTC are in play, the median dude is going to, almost by definition, live in the median house, and his extractable wealth by definition will become the median price.

The median of whatever China decides to ship to us, will by definition, be the median quality TV and be sold at the median price. Either sell at that price or throw away profit or stuff warehouse with unsold merchandise.

Its the same effect as .gov donating money for day care or housing or schooling has no direct effect on rates... all it does is make the item more expensive.

I guess one way of putting it is you can't expect people to be richer if you do give all of them more money (aka inflation).

[marcosdumay]

> the median dude is going to, almost by definition, live in the median house

That's somewhat true (but you can improve the quality of the median house, just can't improve size).

> The median of whatever China decides to ship to us, will by definition, be the median quality TV and be sold at the median price.

But that's not true. Buyers decide the median quality of TVs, not sellers. And TVs can be so cheap that everybody only buy the most expensive one, and still it makes no impact on their budget.

Every physical good is exclusive to some degree, but that degree varies wildily.

[toomuchtodo]

Exactly.

The work week hasn't dropped because people have chosen (poorly, but that's just my opinion) to have more "stuff" than free/leisure time.