Straight talk from Alan Greenspan

When the Federal Reserve touted Alan Greenspan’s appearance at the John Philip Sousa Middle School in Washington, D.C., it announced in a May 19 press release that he would “speak with students…about how sound mathematic and problem-solving skills can promote good money management.”
When Greenspan actually appeared in front of the kids this past Wednesday, however, the spirit must have moved him. The first sentence of the AP account of his appearance reports: “Alan Greenspan, whose powers of obfuscation on monetary matters are legendary, spoke simply and from the heart Thursday to inner-city kids about overcoming self-doubt and getting an education.” The question-and-answer session ran a little truer to form: “[W]hen one student asked him if interest rates were headed up or down, Greenspan replied with one word: ‘Yes.'”