Ben Bernanke

[LuckyTheDog]

Yet another Bush-appointed screw-up?

[Turbineguy]

1. Now that would be a surprise

if he wasn't.

[bryant69]

2. How did he screw up?

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[LuckyTheDog]

5. Signaled a big rate cut

Delivered a small one. Market plunged.

[Mike03]

7. That's not my recollection

Maybe I'm wrong, but for the past four weeks all of the commentary I've heard has said he signaled a .25 and although the market had factored that cut into its forecasts, they HOPED for a larger cut.

However, the more pertinent point is that a cut makes no sense. We just re inflating the bubble that is finally beginning to deflate.

We can have a hard landing or a harder landing. If he keeps cutting rates, we are just going to have an even worse catastrophe on our hands than we already do.

We haven't nearly seen the worst of what's coming over the next three years.

[JNelson6563]

8. I don't know about that

I think the street, ever greedy for free money, decided they really WANTED a 50 basis point cut. That doesn't mean that they had reason to believe it was coming, the fact that that's what they wanted was all the "signal" they needed.

Fools.

Julie

[LuckyTheDog]

9. They better find a formula

The stock market has gone nowhere since Bush took office. That's bad.

[Mike03]

10. That was my read on it too, Julie.

Bernanke is nowhere as good as Greenspan at keeping his cards close to his vest. But even Greenspan was good at telegraphing without being overt about it. You could read the minutes of the last Fed meeting and predict fairly accurately what was coming. I think Bernanke understands the market hates few things more than it hates a surprise.

[pa28]

11. That's exactly what happened.

The market projected it's desires onto Bernanke's comments.

Since summer the financial punditry has become accustomed to asking for and getting rate cuts on demand. Maybe they thought in talking themselves into a half point cut plus a dovish stance they would bulldoze the Fed into it.

[Mike03]

3. What would you like to see him do at this point? NT

[The_Casual_Observer]

4. Ben's only weapon is interest rates.

[durrrty libby]

6. For a laugh, check out a favorite Ben video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipJTqCbETog

A well done spoof created by students for The Columbia Business School Follies

I should add the guy singing is imitating his Dean of the school, who was also

in the running for Fed Chair