In comparison, Mr Greenspan's task of preventing another recession, or even deflation, looks trickier.The Federal Reserve is not yet convinced that America's economy is heading for a double-dip recession.
The surprise drop in prices marked the third time in a year that inflation has turned negative, fanning fears that the eurozone is headed for all-out deflation – a sustained period of falling prices.
The Fed will, first, likely succeed in heading off deflation and, second, will almost certainly overshoot the mark.
Even as officials here prepare to offer details Friday of their $124 billion plan to jolt this nation out of its economic doldrums, a controversial new report argues that unless Japan takes drastic action quickly, it is headed for a long period of deflation and decline.
There is a pervasive, and admittedly seductive, argument floating around that the U.S. is headed for a dire bout with deflation.
Osborne set the remit for the Bank of England's monetary policy committee a few weeks ago at 2% inflation, and has recently celebrated the fact that the UK is headed to deflation, absurdly taking credit for the fact that falling prices apparently were a result of his nonexistent long-term economic plan.
In addition, bond investors sense that with high energy costs, Fed tightening and sliding housing prices, the economy is headed for weakness, if not recession and deflation.
As regular readers of this column know, I firmly believe we're headed for a time of benign price deflation, propelled by increasing productivity and the resulting excess supply.
Plus the UK is almost certainly headed to deflation next month; anything less than a 0.4% growth rate generates deflation.
