Ben’s The Man (but I digress)
 I tell ya, I would not want to be Ben Bernanke for all the tea in that great capitalist nation they call China. Just kidding, well, maybe not; Communist China’s corporate tax rates are lower than ours and their capital gains rate on stocks is a friggin donut hole, but I digress. About Mr. Bernanke – I see his position, at present, as being a tad bit precarious (to say the least).
While the economy of the United States, the greatest capitalist nation in the entire world, with the second highest corporate tax rate on the friggin planet, but I digress, is seemingly just beginning to rev its engine, more than a few heavyweight economist types are already waiving checkered flags – signaling to the bearded one that it’s time to ease off the accelerator and begin raising short-term interest rates.
At the same time there are those who, sporting sufficient clout themselves, believe we are nowhere near the finish line, that we have indeed just entered the race. They would therefore tell the razor-less driver of monetary policy to keep the pedal to the metal and not even consider applying the brakes as we motor our way out of the “worst recession since the Great Depression”. They’re also the crew most likely to urge Washington to continue spending without regard to the pounding the currency of this greatest capitalist nation in the world, with more friggin czars than the Romanov family, but I digress, is taking.
Normally I’d take a stand on such a debate – and of course this is no exception. The thing is I take two stands: In the short-run, given where we’ve been, easy monetary policy (rates low, liquidity high) makes perfect sense. In the long-run however, we absolutely must show some cojones (i.e., get real with govt deficits, govt spending, etc.) and bring back the greenback. The weak dollar, while it’s very good for U.S. exporters in the near-term, spells very bad news in the long-run for a number of reasons – the three biggest being inflation, inflation and inflation. Which is something the economy of this greatest capitalist nation in the world, with a currency that faces friggin parity with the Canadian dollar (no offense, eh), but I digress, can ill afford.
So for now I find myself sitting in the bleachers, praying that Mr. Ben Shalom Bernanke, the valedictorian of his Dillon High senior class, 1590 SAT scorer, summa cum laude graduate of Harvard University, PhD in economics recipient from MIT, world’s foremost authority on The Great Depression, current Federal Reserve Chairman and one hell of a saxophone player, can navigate the turns to come without crashing our economy into a wall. Call me naïve, but I’m thinking (maybe hoping) he may just be the guy we want in the driver’s seat…
I’ll say it again – given the unavoidable challenges our hero (with his irreproachable credentials) will face in the months to come – I would not want to be him for all the tea in that great capitalist nation they call China (not that I’d ever have the opportunity, since I’m not even remotely qualified – although I did play a pretty mean trumpet in the sixth grade), but I digress.
Have a great day!!
Marty
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There sure is a lot of material for digressing, this week. GOOD JOB…..
I think we are in a man made “bubble” that is going to burst when we have to face reality and pay for all the extravagant programs that should be pushed to the back burner right now.
We need to have entrepreneurs willing to start or maintain businesses which will only happen if government gets out of the way and lets the private sector go to work without all the fees and taxes that they will be forced to pay now, which in turn will cause more joblessness and businesses to go elsewhere. Now, jobs are created in an artificial way and there is no real ground to stand on. Government is creating a cardhouse that will fall down eventually..
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you have a good sense of humour.
Please be my guest!