Alexander W. Salter

"While we should not stubbornly insist on first-best policy if the second-best is all we can get, neither should we ignore the question of which policy is first-best. As long as we are reconsidering the Fed’s mandate, nominal GDP targeting should be on the table." ~ Alexander William Salter

"Politics is compromise. Half a loaf is better than no loaf at all. Price stability is the half-loaf of monetary policy rules. It seems foolish to go hungry simply because haute cuisine is unaffordable." ~ Alexander William Salter

"We’ve advanced little beyond the classical-liberal prescriptions of free markets, sound money, and peace. 'Keep it simple, stupid,' is good enough for government work." ~ Alexander William Salter

"Any time it looks like there’s a tradeoff between unemployment and inflation, something has gone very wrong. We could’ve avoided both horns of the dilemma if the Fed had done its job." ~ Alexander William Salter

"We have enough information to conclude policy mistakes, especially on the demand side, go a long way toward explaining today’s inflation." ~ Alexander William Salter

"Hopefully, these lousy explanations will soon fade out of the public’s consciousness. We need to focus on what matters: a comparative abundance of money over goods. " ~ Alexander William Salter

"Monetary policy should be about money—not specific markets, but their common denominator. The sooner we enlist Friedman to help 'run the show,' the faster we can clean up our economic messes." ~ Alexander William Salter

"The way we fix things is by carefully diagnosing demand-side and supply-side problems. When it comes to demand, we’re talking about central bank activity. Unfortunately, none of McLaughlin’s four points are in the ballpark." ~ Alexander William Salter

"We face even more difficult challenges ahead. We who believe in good economics and prudent political economy have our work cut out for us if we want to bring the rule of law to central banking." ~ Alexander William Salter

"We use models, mathematical or otherwise, because they help us understand the real world. Let’s not define that world out of existence. Supply problems can, in fact, cause inflation." ~ Alexander William Salter