Lets get something straight here, Bubble ben bernanke doesn't care to support a "strong dollar" the dollar is on the brink of collapsing, if he cared about supporting it he would have done so months and months ago, the dollar will continue to fall as easy money policies stay in place and the printing press runs continuously for who knows how much longer. Bubble ben bernanke is lying to everyone about saying he wants a stronger dollar, he could care less.
Bernanke put the oil speculation nonsense to rest today
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Lets get something straight here, Bubble ben bernanke doesn't care to support a "strong dollar" the dollar is on the brink of collapsing, if he cared about supporting it he would have done so months and months ago, the dollar will continue to fall as easy money policies stay in place and the printing press runs continuously for who knows how much longer. Bubble ben bernanke is lying to everyone about saying he wants a stronger dollar, he could care less.
You see, I think the Fed (Bernanke) has admitted to it. it IS a risk. I don't deny it's a risk, Bernanke doesn't deny that we're not risking inflation. No one wants inflation to get out of control.
I just bristle at all the personal attacks on Bernanke. Honestly I think he's doing just fine in a very tough situation. Could it all blow up in his face? Sure. I don't know, and I don't claim to know. Those who debate me on here, it seems to me, claim to 'know' exactly what's going on.
Fed prints money and gas prices go higher. Obviously the rise is due to the Fed right? Let's just ignore the other factors that might also be at play... That's why I keep using the term 'over-simplification' or some variation thereof. I bristle when I see guys that are so confident that this is all Bernanke's fault, that they can call him names and talk shit. Bernanke is trying to help your economy fellas. You might disagree with him, but please...he is not stupid. Give that line a rest.
Sometimes I fell like Henry Fonda's character in '12 Angry Men'. Great movie by the way that gives a blueprint for what it means to be a man.
the problem we all (here) have with you is that you fail to see bernanke's intentions.
1. bernanke says inflation is a risk, but says that right now "inflation is subdued and transitory". on the aspect of transitory, the market is saying otherwise. on the aspect of "subdued", consumers are saying otherwise. transitory is a guess, and subdued is an outright lie.
2. bernanke isn't trying to help our economy, he is trying to save the banks. that is why he has executed two rounds of QE that have done nothing for anyone except big banks. he is recapitalizing the balance sheets of banks at the expense of the public, and savers.
3. he is deliberately destroying the dollar whilst singing the happy "we want a strong dollar" tune. he is no more ridiculous than lil' timmy and paulson and snow before him. all asshats.
Olias, you are on of the voices of reason. It is nice to get a contrary opinion. What we don't know for sure is what would have resulted in letting the major banks and AIG go under, and not decreasing rates much nor expanding the Fed balance sheet. The one person likely best qualified to know what would have happened is Bernanke. In fact, in the initial stages of what became the Great Depression many banks were allowed to go under and depositors lost money, as there was no FDIC in place. Hoover maintained that better days were ahead and pursued a relatively non-interventionist approach. Those policies led to deeper recession, depression, deflation and breadlines.
Bernanke may be partly responsible for the financial crisis, as he was a member of the Greenspan Fed that failed to regulate the mortgage industry properly (while at the same time Cox was asleep at the SEC), and we don't know whose side Bernanke was on when Gramm slipped repeal of Glass Steagal into that omnibus spending bill at the eleventh hour. (I can confidently say, however, that Greenspan, at that time at least, would have been in favor). But Bernanke does not make fiscal policy, he can only react to it with monetary policy and banking regulation.
When you're handed a hot, steamy pile of shit, never mind that some of it is your own, it will be impossible to turn it into a pile of gold. That kind of thing can only happen in the New Testament.
You just described a scene from 'The Holy Mountain'. Another kickass movie that changed my life. If you like artistic movies that don't 'spell it all out for you', I recommend
I agree with you in the evaluation of Bernanke and Greenspan. They may seem to be the same type of creature on the face of it. However I think Greenspan is a villain of the economic collapse, Bernanke is doing a pretty good job here trying to fix Greenspan's mess. I don't know what else to say. Good weekend all. Let's not think about Elite Trader or the markets for a couple of days.
no one here is discussing or arguing the bailout of the banks, AIG or the financial crisis. what we are discussing and placing blame on is quantitative easing and the continual theft of the savers of this country to perpetuate a continual onslaught on the value of the dollar, in the hopes of inflating away our debt. in the process, inflation - or shall i say STAGflation - through skyrocketing commodities and stagnant/falling wages.
if you honestly try to argue that there is no inflation (and you have, olias) then you are completely deluded.
piezoe, you also think there is no inflation, do you?
if you honestly try to argue that there is no inflation (and you have, olias) then you are completely deluded.
piezoe, you also think there is no inflation, do you?
There is one common theme amongst all of the opinions. Namely, the fact that the repeal of Glass Steagall was a bad idea. We can all agree on that.
It's also well known that at approximately the same time (perhaps 2 years after the 1999 repeal of Glass Steagall), Rubin, Summers and Greenspan all fought against the CFTC regulation of derivatives.
Now, put 2+2 together. Glass Steagall was repealed and within no time banks were leveraging up via derivatives, creating the immense shadow banking system which collapsed and precipitated all of the b.s. that we've had to endure the past few years.
I go back to the analogy about the firefighter and the arsonist. The same institution which set the fire has been heralded for its "valiant efforts" in fighting this fire. It seems that Greenspan has been scapegoated and now Bernanke is given a free pass. I'm certain the entire episode was designed to place blame upon one party so as to give leeway for the successor to "do what's necessary".
Many people have fallen for this trick, that much I'm sure of after reading thread after thread arguing in favor of Bernanke's actions.
It's also well known that at approximately the same time (perhaps 2 years after the 1999 repeal of Glass Steagall), Rubin, Summers and Greenspan all fought against the CFTC regulation of derivatives.
Now, put 2+2 together. Glass Steagall was repealed and within no time banks were leveraging up via derivatives, creating the immense shadow banking system which collapsed and precipitated all of the b.s. that we've had to endure the past few years.
I go back to the analogy about the firefighter and the arsonist. The same institution which set the fire has been heralded for its "valiant efforts" in fighting this fire. It seems that Greenspan has been scapegoated and now Bernanke is given a free pass. I'm certain the entire episode was designed to place blame upon one party so as to give leeway for the successor to "do what's necessary".
Many people have fallen for this trick, that much I'm sure of after reading thread after thread arguing in favor of Bernanke's actions.
Tao, just wanted to comment on your first point, which is well taken. Every Fed Chairman and every Treasury Secretary, since I have been old enough to pay attention, has espoused a "strong dollar" policy regardless of what else is going on in the economy. If you were a creditor of the USA, can you imagine how you might react to the Fed Chairman or the Treasury Secretary saying they favored a weaker dollar? That's just not going to happen. But rest assured that Bernanke realizes that Fed policies are going to cause increased inflation. The Fed, in spite of what we may think of them from time to time, is not composed of dummies. They are trying to stimulate the economy and stock market, provide a credit environment conducive to job creation and make US products more attractive abroad . The also want to monetize as much debt as they can, but are aware that they can only take this policy so far before our creditors say "Enough!", "Basta!". The Fed understands that inflation is a necessary evil that will result from their monetary policies. Bernanke will not "destroy" the dollar single-handedly, he would have to have help from an untenable fiscal policy to do that! Bernanke does want to "ease" as much as the Fed can get away with. That will really help a debtor nation such as the USA. Imagine you were forced to pay back a huge debt using dollars that had more purchasing power than the dollars borrowed. That would increase the real cost of borrowing! Bernanke wants to do the opposite. He wants to keep the cost of borrowing as low as possible. Our complaints really ought to be aimed at our dysfunctional government, more so than at the Fed in my opinion.
When Volcker was Fed Chairman he pursued a "tough love " policy and we had unbelievably high interest rates for a while and unemployment too. But in Volcker's time there were jobs to return to, and the fiscal, financial situations he faced were not nearly so difficult as those facing Chairman Bernanke. I'm sure Bernanke has made some mistakes, but I don't see any evidence that he is not doing what he can, because honestly the arrows in the Feds quiver must be close to exhausted at this point.
P.S. Tao if you were to look back a year or more at some of my posts in those threads where everyone was saying we were going to have deflation, you will notice that even then I was warning that Fed Policies were going to lead to significant inflation (I said: "likely low double digit."). I was also one of the first to point out that inflation was already present in the economy when others were saying their wasn't any.
Everybody who believes in Bernanke can all join hands and be "Bernanke Buddies"!!
In a way, Olias is right, because Bernanke is just the current face on a system. That's the way it is with most "leaders", unless you are an entrepreneur that sets up a system (just like starting a company). Most guys in charge are just baby-sitters of an pre-built system. And it seems the current system is set up to screw up (history suggests that anyway) - he just happens to be Grand Marshal of today's parade.
In a way, Olias is right, because Bernanke is just the current face on a system. That's the way it is with most "leaders", unless you are an entrepreneur that sets up a system (just like starting a company). Most guys in charge are just baby-sitters of an pre-built system. And it seems the current system is set up to screw up (history suggests that anyway) - he just happens to be Grand Marshal of today's parade.