Okay, let's start by saying that New York Times columnist Paul Krugman won a Nobel Prize. Of course, president Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, so winning does not mean all that much. Krugman, however, is probably the economist with the biggest following in the USA today (or certainly in the top three). But today, Krugman also reveals himself a fool. In a piece in the Times, Krugman lambastes the government and the Federal Reserve for not doing more to promote economic growth. Here is what he says of the Fed:
The Fed has a so-called dual mandate: it’s supposed to seek both price stability and full employment. And last week the Fed released its latest set of economic projections, showing that it expects to fail on both parts of its mandate, with inflation below target and unemployment far above target for years to come.
It may not jump out at you, but what Krugman is saying in English is that the Fed has failed in keeping prices stable because they are not going up fast enough. That's right. Prices have been stable in America for the last few years as measured by the government. Washington ignores the big rise in food and fuel prices and looks at everything else, and those prices have been slightly rising for the last three years. So, Krugman says that stable prices do not satisfy the Fed's mandate to achieve stable prices. Krugman wants prices to be rising faster!
And this man won a Nobel Prize? In economics?
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