Ben Bernanke and the Fed in general have been mostly wrong on their economic calls. It begs the question of whether or not they know what they are doing. The answer is, if they knew what they were doing we wouldn’t be in the mess we are in. The Fed is the fountainhead of economic dislocation, malinvestment, and capital destruction. Yet they say it is the other 99 guys who are out of step.
Here are a collection of quotes from Mr. Bernanke, some before he became Chairman (Feb. 1, 2006), but the theme is the same. You could argue that these quotes are taken out of context or are the result of cherry picking, but I think they are a fair representation of his beliefs.
For example:
Jan. 10, 2008:
“The Federal Reserve is not currently forecasting a recession.”
Hat tip to Matt H.
