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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
I generally leave the details of fiscal programs to the Administration and Congress. That’s really their area of authority and responsibility, and I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to second guess.
BEN BERNANKE

Details Responsibility Thinking
Investment banks manage to go bankrupt through their investment-banking activities, commercial banks manage to go bankrupt through their commercial-banking activities.
BEN BERNANKE

Banking Banks Commercial Investment
Under current law, on January 1, 2013, there’s going to be a massive fiscal cliff of large spending cuts and tax increases.
BEN BERNANKE

Cutting Important Law
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
I don’t think that Chinese ownership of U.S. assets is so large as to put our country at risk economically.
BEN BERNANKE

Country Risk Thinking
If your uniform isn’t dirty, you haven’t been in the game.
BEN BERNANKE

Dirty Game Graduation
The Federal Reserve is not currently forecasting a recession.
BEN BERNANKE

Federal Forecasting Recession Reserve
I served seven years as the chair of the Princeton economics department where I had responsibility for major policy decisions, such as whether to serve bagels or doughnuts at the department coffee hour.
BEN BERNANKE

Coffee Responsibility Years
Both humanity’s capacity to innovate and the incentives to innovate are greater today than at any other time in history.
BEN BERNANKE

Humanity Incentives Today
With respect to their safety, derivatives, for the most part, are traded among very sophisticated financial institutions and individuals who have considerable incentive to understand them and to use them properly.
BEN BERNANKE

Incentives Safety Use
Speaking as somebody who has been happily married for 35 years, I can’t imagine any choice more consequential for a lifelong journey than the choice of a traveling companion.
BEN BERNANKE

Journey Travel Years
It’s true that the Federal Reserve faces a lot of political pressure and is unpopular in many circles.
BEN BERNANKE

Circles Political Pressure
We’ve never had a decline in house prices on a nationwide basis. So, what I think what is more likely is that house prices will slow, maybe stabilize, might slow consumption spending a bit. I don’t think it’s going to drive the economy too far from its full employment path, though.
BEN BERNANKE

Employment House Thinking
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
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

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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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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