The real problem lies in the fact that “inflation is an inherently persistent process and moreover the degree of persistence tends to increase with the rate of inflation. Bruno presents a clear picture of how such acceleration of inflation takes place and makes the lesson graphic with an analogy: “chronic inflation tends to resemble smoking: once you (are) beyond a minimal number it very fiffcult to escape a worsening addiction. In fact, “when shocks occur (e.g. a personal crisis for a smoker, a price crisis for an economy) there is great chance that the severity of the habit…will jump to a new, higher level that persists even after the shock has abated,” and this process can repeat itself