On Alan Greenspan...

From a reader...

Question

Another note, have you read Alan Greenspans book?  I am currently listening to it… [it's] actually quite good.  Gives a great perspective to the economy as a whole.  Didn't realize he was so connected and had parts and insights from Kennedy on[ward]… I am only 1/4 way through but I am impressed.

Answer

For your information, Alan Greenspan is an Ayn Rand (“Atlast Shrugged”) disciple – and again I am just not a supporter of Rand's kind of selfish, unbridled capitalism. 

But then it turns out that Greenspan isn’t really a devotee of unregulated capitalism either, when it comes down to it, based on his repeated, rate-cutting bailouts of the stock market – which harmed small investors and market timers (like me) by creating a floor against market losses – in effect using my government's banking system to eliminate risk for the wealthy, investor class he represents.

Arguably, Greenspan is perhaps not as rabidly heartless and insane economically as Milton Friedman, but I do see him in a similar light. 

And though I’ve read and been told that Greenspan's book is critical of Bush, sub-prime, derivatives, etc... Why didn't he fight those evils and instead did essentially Wall Street's bidding as Fed Chairman?  The best joke I’ve heard regarding Greenspan’s book comes from Bill Marr, “Gee, it’s too bad this guy was never in a position to do something about this stuff…”  Well, tee, hee, hee.  The joke was on us.  He was.  He didn’t.  So too was Paul Volker.  But he did.

So that’s my take on Alan Greenspan.  He’s like Ted Bundy, espousing the “gospel” and “salvation” – not when it would have been hard to live up to (and saved the lives of the girls Bundy butchered) but rather -- exactly when it did him the most good – at the end – when there were best selling books to write and $100K speaking engagements to schedule.

Rand was a sick, greedy, shameless and amoral opportunist – and so is Alan Greenspan.

Comments

Anonymous said…
What was it the Volker did different then Greenspan? All Volker did was raise rates to fight the double digit inflation? That is what he was supposed to do...

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