His Legacy Tarnished, Greenspan Goes on Defensive

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Hailed three years ago as "the greatest central banker who ever lived," the retired chairman of the Federal Reserve now is being criticized for his management of the U.S. economy before he retired in 2006. The Fed's low rates and laissez-faire regulatory oversight during his final years are widely blamed for sowing the seeds of today's financial crisis -- one that began in the U.S. housing market and is now battering banks, stock markets, borrowers and consumers around the world.

For much of his 18 years atop the world's most-influential economic institution, Mr. Greenspan was lionized for the economy's performance. Now, he notes, he's being second-guessed for it.

"I was praised for things I didn't do," Mr. Greenspan said during one of three interviews at his sun-drenched office in downtown Washington, D.C. "I am now being blamed for things that I didn't do."

Now 82 years old, Mr. Greenspan wants to set the record straight before the ink dries on the first draft of the financial crisis' history. The former Fed chief doesn't deny that he cares about his reputation. But the larger issue at stake, he says, is getting the lessons of the crisis right.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120760341392296107.html?mod=hpp_us_whats_news

---

:cry:

[sutz12]

1. Can you tarnish a turd?

I've heard you can't polish one.

:shrug:

[whistle]

5. No, but you can certainly varnish a turd and wear it around your neck

#PP550-8A Moose poop necklace with nine pieces for poop, 20" black anodized aluminum necklace chain with gold tone jump rings and clasp. Instead of being full of it, why not wear it!

http://www.tellmewhereonearth.com/Web%20Pages/Poop/Poop_Page_1.htm

Can you imagine a necklace made from Greenspan turds

[whistle]

2. Greenspan has no defense his implementation of monetary policies

...when led to the massive use of derivatives and SIVs and mountains of debt and low cost credit for speculation and gambling were designed specifically to rob and loot the equity and savings of 90% of Americans for the benefit of those with wealth and power

[Winterblues]

3. "I was praised for things I didn't do,"

That sure is the truth...When Clinton's policies came to fruitation Greenspan took the credit although he did everything in his power to obstruct Clinton's innititives. Remember he was there during the financial decline of the Reagan years and the Extreme/historic economic turn around and expansion of the Clinton years, despite him and not because of him. Bush* comes along and everything went back to the Reagan model of declining revenue and huge debt accumulation. Now he wants to say it was not his fault.....

[JDPriestly]

4. Greenspan raised the interest rate and kept it high during a

Democratic administration and lowered it and kept it excessively low during a Republican administration. He manipulated the interest rates for political purposes -- to insure prosperity during the Republican administration. Now he claims that the extreme fluctuations in our economy are not his fault. Mr. Greenspan, the problems in the economy are not entirely your fault, but they are in significant part your fault.

The greatest fault of course lies on our trade policy which has tied our government's hands behind its backs when it comes to regulating any aspect of our economy in a meaningful way. Thanks to our laissez faire trade policy, we can't even effectively control the quality of the dog food or the paint on the children's toys that are sold on our shelves, much less wages or the currency balance.

[VWolf]

6. He's right, in a sense

Let me clarify his statements:

"I was praised (by morons) for things I didn't do."

"I am now being blamed (by those who know better) for things that I didn't do."

[whistle]

7. What exactly was it that Greenspan claims he did not do?

[Texano78704]

8. How much more proof do we need?

Monetarism doesn't work, unless your objective is to move money from the those that have little to those that have a lot.

[Xipe Totec]

9. Cry me a red ink river... nt

[DCKit]

10. Collaborator n/t

[cliss]

11. I'm glad the Old Coot lived long enough

to see the May hem that his policies created.

We are standing at the edge of the Abyss, and looking down. And he knows it. The system is so fragile right now, it will be a miracle if we survive it. That's how bad things are. They just tell you those things. But if you look at recent FED minutes of meetings, you understand that the game is just about over.

And Pondscum knows he's going to get the blame. Rightly so, old fool.

[goclark]

12. His wife Andrea Mitchell Greenspan does not use

her married name when she is on Cable as their Senior Political Adviser.

Never heard her ever refer to her husband.

Just about all of them are married to someone connected to the Republican party. :puke:

[Pale Blue Dot]

13. Frankly, the scapegoating of Greenspan scares me.

Not because I disagree with it, but because those in the know seem to be aware that it's time to scapegoat... someone. To me, it's just another indication that things are about to get really, really bad and those in power know it.