Inflation is here to stay, the author argues, but the nation is willfully blind to that fact. Indeed, we invest considerable energy in feeble and futile attempts to "make it go away," attempts that may be doing as much harm as good. Why do we have this ostrichlike attitude? The reason is that the evil effects traditionally associated with inflation have made it morally unacceptable to even discuss inflation in an open-minded way, just as it was unacceptable to discuss the facts of life in Victorian society; our efforts have all been skewed in the direction of repressive half-measures, rather than toward a direct reconciliation of our economic structure with the persistence of inflation. As the author points out, if we once accepted inflation as a persisting phenomenon, it might be possible to manage it in such a way that it becomes innocuous, or even a force contributing to growth. The time has come, he thinks, to divorce moralistic irrelevancies from our debates and attack the devilish aspects of inflation frontally. In this area we can benefit greatly from the experience of countries which have learned to live with inflation and, if not to love it, at least to govern it. Brazil, as the author explains, is a particularly good case for study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]