Greenspan sneezes…

Alan Greenspan's in the news again after he was quoted as saying the current economic meltdown Is "the most wrenching since the end of the second world war."  Now, I know this isn't directly related to software design, but since I've got a degree in Finance, I can't help watching this train wreck, and let's face it - this "situation" has now reached the point where it's impacting the economy as a whole, including software.

I'll be honest - I don't think it's too beneficial for Greenspan to be skulking around the funeral parlor right now offering commentary on the medical care of the deceased. This man was single-handedly responsible for the most prolonged, sustained, and stable economies in the history of this country, and for that, we're all eternally grateful.  But he's got to realize that he's still incredibly quotable, and the best thing he can do for the economy right now is to just shut up and let the Fed work.  You don't see Bill Gates offering opinions to the Wall Street Jounal about how Ballmer's doing, and I'll bet you won't see Favre giving interviews next year about the play of their new quarterback, and we don't need to hear from Greenspan about how the economy's doing, either.  I know this is the way politics is done - look at the way Bill is campaigning for Hillary.  But Greenspan was always above that, so to see him doing this now is disappointing.

Finance, of course, suffers from its own case of jargon overload, so if you're looking for a really clearly-spoken commentary on our current mess, check out this interview with Princeton economist Paul Krugman.  It's light on financial jargon and deep on content, including a really interesting jab at Greenspan about what he might have done to limit the severity of the subprime mess.

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