The Dismal Science of Alan Greenspan

Last night on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Terry Gross interviewed former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Greenspan is promoting his new memoir.

All I can say is: No wonder we are in such a mess if we allow the likes of Greenspan to have such a major influence on economic policy.

In practically the same breath Greenspan said basically this:

Under Clinton’s budget surplus policies we (the people and the government we create) would have been debt free in 2006. Greenspan felt this would have been bad because this surplus would have to be invested and would have given the Government ( us the people) too much power over the financial markets. Then he goes on to say we have a pending financial crisis as boomers retire, especially in Medicaid, because there will not be enough money to pay for health care as this group starts to rely on the government funded system.

OK Mr. Greenspan what makes you feel you can have it both ways?

It seems to me that a surplus, which we (the government) could invest, might just produce a return that would generate the money to cover the Medicaid and perhaps social security shortages. What am I missing here?

Later in the interview Greenspan admits he is a member of the Libertarian wing of the Republican party. He has a "post enlightenment" philosophy. A post enlightenment philosophy? So he does not believe in the enlightenment? He does not believe in reason, or the public interest? In short Alan Greenspan is either a selfish individualist or an idiot. Most likely both. From my perspective these terms are not mutually exclusive. A philosophy of every person for them self causes devolution of society. To take this a step further: Greenspan hates America and the Constitution. He wants to see a return to an aristocratic society. He is an advocate of the Norquist strategy to kill our democracy: “starve the beast. ”

To me, hearing this, the fact that President Clinton (42) kept Greenspan on as Fed chairman, is perhaps his greatest disservice to our nation. The fact that a Democrat (D) would keep a Libertarian in charge of the fundamentals of our economy is unconscionable. A deadly sin. In spite of my human desire, I cannot curse these men or judge them. I will not judge, I will leave that to a higher power. Let them receive their just reward for their selfishness.