To me, a wise and humane policy is occasionally to let inflation rise even when inflation is running above target.

To me, a wise and humane policy is occasionally to let inflation rise even when inflation is running above target.

I'm just opposed to a pure inflation-only mandate in which the only thing a central bank cares about is inflation and not employment.

After adjusting for inflation, the average income of the top 5% of households grew by 38% from 1989 to 2013. …By comparison, the average real income of the other 95% of households grew less than 10%.

Stores don't order merchandise unless they think they can sell it right away. Manufacturers and builders don't produce unless they have buyers lined up. My business contacts describe this as a paradigm shift and they believe it's permanent.

Strapped by tight credit and plummeting sales, businesses have overhauled the way they manage supply chains, inventory, production practices, and staffing.

My bottom line is that monetary policy should react to rising prices for houses or other assets only insofar as they affect the central bank's goal variables - output, employment, and inflation.