21st Century Monetary Policy | Part I: The Rise and Fall of Inflation

Join Jared Davis—a software engineer in Cambridge, Massachusetts who enjoys studying mathematics and reads widely—for the first of a four-part discussion of 21st Century Monetary Policy.

In this salon, we will discuss the first part of Ben Bernanke’s book, 21st Century Monetary Policy.

Bernanke is an economist, historian, and Chairperson of the US Federal Reserve Board of Governors from 2006 through 2014. During his service under Presidents G.W. Bush and Obama, Bernanke responded to the financial crisis of 2007-2009 and shaped the economic recovery, drawing both praise and criticism for the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented policies.

Bernanke’s expertise as a scholar of the Great Depression era gives him an unparalleled view on the changes, challenges, successes, and failures, of US economic policies leading up to events occurring today.

Reading:

We will join the salon having finished reading Part I: The Rise and Fall of Inflation. We will discuss, from Bernanke’s point-of-view, the monetary and fiscal policies that contributed to inflation measured in the United States during the 1970s and early 1980s. We’ll learn about the actions and personalities of leaders of the Federal Reserve who have been credited with putting a stop to inflation (Volcker) and with steadily growing the American economy (Greenspan). Most importantly, we’ll take care to clarify technical terms, situate the economic history with our shared understanding, which viewpoints are not addressed in this history, and consider where Bernanke may be responding to current events.

Readers are encouraged to use our shared library as a supplement.

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Attendees planning to attend the full four-part series (running on the third Saturday of every month from July to October) should purchase a series ticket.

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