{"product_id":"just-what-i-said-isbn-9781576602195","title":"Just What I Said","description":"Not for nothing do her initials also stand for \"Central Bank.\" For nearly two decades, Caroline Baum has produced incisive commentary on central bank policy, the ebbs and flows of the economy, and how they influence the bond market. Her much sought-after, real-time analysis is read by a devoted audience on the BLOOMBERG PROFESSIONAL service within seconds after it appears. The word on the Street is that reading Caroline Baum is an economic education in itself.  \u003cp\u003eThis selection from her more than 1,300 Bloomberg News columns, arranged by major themes and with new introductions by the author, condenses and organizes that wisdom for the first time in print form.\u003c\/p\u003e  Preface  \u003cp\u003eAcknowledgments.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIntroduction.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 Ye of Little Faith.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhy the Federal Reserve gets so much attention, yet so little credit, for the outcomes it effects.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 The Bubble, or This Time Really Is Different!\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eLike terminally ill patients, the late 1990s bubble in technology and Internet stocks passed through the five stages of dying: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. It didn't turn out any better for the market.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 Still Nonsense After All These Years.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eDriving a stake through the heart of popular delusions: Why acts of God aren't good for growth, costs don't push up inflation, and demand in the economy isn't finite.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e4 Myths Under the Microscope.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eRepeating something often enough doesn't make it true. You'd never know it from the misconceptions that survive about tax cuts, trade, and liquidity traps.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e5 First Principles.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHow the Pilgrims learned about the value of incentives, and how backyard birding sheds light on the law of supply and demand.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e6 Understanding the Yield Curve.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eOne rate is set by the central bank, the other by the market. The message couldn't be simpler, which is probably why most economists ignore it.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e7 The \"Political\" Economy.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhat happens when the heavy hand of government tries to intrude on the invisible hand of the market.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e8 Sir Alan.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eTo some, he's a man for all seasons, a knight for all ages. To others, he's the emperor with no clothes. His day job is chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e9 What Would We Do Without a Dollar Policy?\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHow an insipid slogan morphed into a policy, and why we are stuck with it.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e10 Off the Charts.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eSexagenarians bracket the big bull market in bonds, while technical traders are blindsided by the canoe over the waterfall.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e11 Odd Ducks.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eIt's a challenge to ring out the year on a creative note, but sniffing out a shaggy dog story from Petsmart is a slam dunk.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e12 Oil Things to Oil People.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWe can't live without it, but we don't seem to understand it: Why the Fed can't sign over monetary policy to OPEC.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e13 Rewriting History.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePoliticians never let the facts stand between them and a little historical revisionism.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e14 Men in Black.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWho are the Plunge Protection Team, and what are they doing in the financial markets?\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e15 No One Else Would Write About This.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhy automated phone menus and other productivity-enhancing devices are a headache for the consumer and an unmeasured form of inflation.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e16 Love Affair.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhy bonds like to hook up and even fall in love.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e17 Bumbling Bureaucrats.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHow an international lending agency reinvented itself as an überadviser once it had outlived its purpose.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e18 The 2004 Election.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhy a presidential candidate has to run as somebody, not as anybody-but-his-opponent.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e19 Readers Write Back at You.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eReaders send their unedited thoughts into cyberspace, never expecting anyone to read them or reply.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIndex.\u003c\/p\u003e \"Among her rarefied and demanding readership \u003cb\u003eshe has earned a reputation for timeliness, originality, knowledge, and--believe it or not--wit.\u003c\/b\u003e How has she pulled it off? She's a reporter first and an analyst second, which means she actually knows what she’s talking about, and this allows her to cut the columnizer smoke blowing to a bare minimum. She knows everybody, and fears nobody. Most important of all, she has a strong point of view, best tagged as 'classical liberal,' which equips her with a refreshing impatience with cant and self-serving obfuscation.\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Weekly Standard,\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/31\/05) \u003cb\u003eCaroline Baum\u003c\/b\u003e has been a columnist at Bloomberg News since 1998. She has been writing about the economy and the bond market since 1987. In 2004 and 2005, she received first-place National Headliner Awards in the wire service\/commentary category.  \"Caroline Baum is one of the few topical commentators who write things that have lasting value. This compilation provides a history of the economic issues of the time and timeless insights.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—Paul H. O'Neill\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/b\u003eFormer Secretary of the U.S. Treasury  \u003cp\u003e\"Caroline Baum is a rarity--an economics commentator who actually understands economics and writes about it with clarity and passion. Read her and learn! Read her and enjoy!\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—Gregory Mankiw\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/b\u003eProfessor of Economics, Harvard University\u003cbr\u003e Chairman, U.S. Council of Economics Advisors, 2003-2005\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\"If you are interested in the Fed, interest rates, the budget deficit, taxes, China, or anything economic under the sun, Caroline Baum is a must-read.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—Lawrence Kudlow\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/b\u003eHost, CNBC's \u003ci\u003eKudlow \u0026amp; Company\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\"Not many financial journalists' columns repay a reading months or years later. Caroline Baum's knack for making complex ideas understandable and her irreverent style make her book one of the rare exceptions.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e—Dr. Allan H. Meltzer\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Allan H. Meltzer University Professor of Political Economy, Carnegie Mellon University\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bloomberg Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47989494251749,"sku":"NP9781576602195","price":23.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781576602195.jpg?v=1761784329","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/just-what-i-said-isbn-9781576602195","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}