Sounds like every central banker. I whipped up a couple of simplified graphics that illustrate, quite dramatically, the impact of fiat money, government price controls on credit, and inflationary money supply policy. One might call it the curse of the central banker.
(Adapted from charts originally created by Michael W. Hodges, based on data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.)
No wonder the issues in the US election campaign are turning towards economic concerns. Not only are there some (economic concerns, that is), but the core Bush-bashing issue of his presidency is starting to look rather limp. MoveOn.org had to turn to vicious slander in its effort to discredit the Congressional testimony of General Petreaus as propaganda for the White House. The media has, in general, been fairly reliably opposed to the Iraq war. Reporters have consistently hedged good news with bad, and are usually skeptical of any news of progress. Some outright suppress it, revelling in predictions of the inglorious defeat of the US-led coalition.
Yet the orthodox view of Iraq as a disaster is under threat. Even the BBC is pointing to statistics that — across the board, it says — show the situation in Iraq is improving:
Is Iraq getting better? The statistics say so, across the board.
Over the past three months, there has been a sharp and sustained drop in all forms of violence. The figures for dead and wounded, military and civilian, have also greatly improved.
All across Baghdad, which has seen the worst of the violence, streets are springing back to life. Shops and restaurants which closed down are back in business.
People walk in crowded streets in the evening, when just a few months ago they would have been huddled behind locked doors in their homes.
Everybody agrees that things are much better.
Except the BBC, of course:
But is the improvement only skin deep? And will it last once the American troops, whose “surge” has clearly made a difference, begin to scale down?
Several quotations in the article do support the view that security, progress and peace in Iraq remain dependent on coalition forces and reconstruction efforts. Which leads to only one conclusion: those calling for a rapid withdrawal (including presidential candidates that do) are willing to give up the gains made, condemn Iraq to rule by partisan or insurgent militias, and sacrifice the peace and prosperity of Iraqis on the altar of political expediency. Perversely, if that happens they’ll get to say, “I told you so,” instead of paying the price for their betrayal. I hope the American people won’t let that happen.
If I were Australian, and John Clarke weren’t a New Zealander, and he really were a politician, he’d probably get my vote. Here’s a video of a wonderfully deadpan Clarke and Dawe skit based on a minor controversy over the possible cause of death of a whale near where an oil company was preparing to do seismic testing. The news report gives the required background, and then Brian Dawe interviews “minister” John Clarke about it on ABC Australia’s satirical show, The 7.30 Report.
No surprise that in a recent interview, Clarke cites the Goons among his comic heroes.
