VIX is really moving DOWN?

Thoughts on the VIX's downward trend in the face of data that indicates higher rates are necessary to rein in inflation would be greatly appreciated. Since this is terrible news for equities, we anticipate that buying options will be done in order to hedge risk, which will cause the VIX to rise. The VIX, on the other hand, is below 20, and key indices are increasing WITH yields. Unless we believe that stocks have reached their actual bottom, this seems to be a contradiction of conventional market behaviour. I disagree with that notion since I believe valuations are still excessively high. Does anyone believe that risk is accumulating in unregulated private markets that are not subject to conventional market signals?