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Economics is a highly sophisticated field of thought that is superb at explaining to policymakers precisely why the choices they made in the past were wrong. About the future, not so much.

Ben Bernanke

The basic prescription for preventing deflation is therefore straightforward, at least in principle: Use monetary and fiscal policy as needed to support aggregate spending.
BEN BERNANKE

Business Principle Support
Life is amazingly unpredictable; any 22-year-old who thinks they know where they will be in 10 years, much less in 30, is simply lacking imagination.
BEN BERNANKE

Imagination Thinking Years
The GSEs are adequately capitalized. They are in no danger of failing.
BEN BERNANKE

Capitalized Danger Failing
A collapse in U.S. stock prices certainly would cause a lot of white knuckles on Wall Street. But what effect would it have on the broader U.S. economy? If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.
BEN BERNANKE

Country Stock Street Wall White
Among the largest banks, the capital ratios remain good and I don’t expect any serious problems . . . . among the large, internationally active banks that make up a very substantial part of our banking system.
BEN BERNANKE

Banking Ratio Serious
Our mission, as set forth by the Congress is a critical one: to preserve price stability, to foster maximum sustainable growth in output and employment, and to promote a stable and efficient financial system that serves all Americans well and fairly.
BEN BERNANKE

Employment Financial Growth
A money-financed tax cut is essentially equivalent to Milton Friedman’s famous ‘helicopter drop’ of money.
BEN BERNANKE

Cutting Helicopters Milton
It takes about two and a half percent growth just to keep unemployment stable.
BEN BERNANKE

Growth Two Unemployment
Although low inflation is generally good, inflation that is too low can pose risks to the economy – especially when the economy is struggling.
BEN BERNANKE

Economy Risk Struggle
The risk that the economy has entered a substantial downturn appears to have diminished over the past month or so.
BEN BERNANKE

Months Past Risk
If you want to understand geology, study earthquakes. If you want to understand the economy, study the Depression.
BEN BERNANKE

Depression Earthquake Want
I and others were mistaken early on in saying that the subprime crisis would be contained. The causal relationship between the housing problem and the broad financial system was very complex and difficult to predict.
BEN BERNANKE

Casual Financial Problem Relationship
It’s the price of success: people start to think you’re omnipotent.
BEN BERNANKE

People Price Success Thinking
The U.S. government has a technology, called a printing press (or, today, its electronic equivalent), that allows it to produce as many U.S. dollars as it wishes at essentially no cost.
BEN BERNANKE

Government Technology Wish
The benefit of appointing a hawkish central banker is the increased inflation-fighting credibility that such an appointment brings.
BEN BERNANKE

Bankers Benefit Fighting
It’s true that the Federal Reserve faces a lot of political pressure and is unpopular in many circles.
BEN BERNANKE

Circles Political Pressure

Economics is a highly sophisticated field of thought that is superb at explaining to policymakers precisely why the choices they made in the past were wrong. About the future, not so much.

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Popular Authors

Economics is a highly sophisticated field of thought that is superb at explaining to policymakers precisely why the choices they made in the past were wrong. About the future, not so much.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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