So you’re losing actual wealth, yes, (a small bit), but it’s the safest form of carrying wealth into the future at all

That's how it has worked, but if we're talking about the government using inflation as a strategy for getting out of a debt they keep expanding at a faster rate, the assumption of a small, predictable loss won't necessarily hold. IIRC treasuries suddenly becoming a worse deal was a factor in many US banks being forced to consolidate in recent years.