The Fed

With his current timid, weak, and prevaricating position on price inflation, Powell is positioning himself as the new Arthur Burns, who did nothing to end 1970s inflation. 

The relative lack of inflation in Japan doesn't mean real wages haven't fallen.

The Keynesians running our economic life may be reassured that the Fed cannot fail in a technical sense, but the public should be appalled.

Tightening the interest rate hurts both bubble and solid businesses. The Fed should just focus on reducing the money supply.

Congress enjoys exorbitant political privilege in the form of cheap deficit spending—but it may soon come to an end.

A common error in economics is to label increases price increases inflation. Inflation actually is an increase in the money supply, and that increase leads ultimately to price hikes.

Jeff and Bob discuss the effect of rising interest rates on Uncle Sam's ability to service debt—and promote the increasingly less radical idea that a default on Treasury debt is both inevitable and good.

The Federal Reserve was supposed to prevent recessions that people blamed on the lack of central banking. Not surprisingly, the post-Fed recessions have been worse.

Ben Bernanke once claimed that a monetary gold standard caused economic instability. He failed to mention that his fiat money standard causes the boom-and-bust cycles.

Paul Krugman denies that the Fed artificially suppressed interest rates. As usual, Krugman neither understands interest rates nor the effects of inflationary policies.