Off the Cuff: The Fed Is Very, Very Scared

In this week's Off the Cuff podcast, Chris and Brian Pretti discuss:

• The Fed's Nightmare
  • Bedlam will ensue if/when the market loses confidence
• Age of Anomalies
  • Fed-induced market distortions are shaking that confidence
• Pump & Pray
  • Does the Fed have any better game plan?
• Central Planning Fault Lines
  • Rifts among allies are increasing the risks

Brian Pretti joins Chris this week for a Fed-centric discussion. The tone is somber, as both Chris and Brian feel that the Fed's endgame here is as increasingly certain as it was avoidable had a different path been chosen after the 2008 crisis.

But as we all know, the Fed and its central banking brethren embarked on a "pump & pray" program that has wildly distorted markets and enriched the elite at the expense of the masses. And all the while, they've been touting the benefits of their strategy and lucky we are that they're at the helm.

It saddens Chris and Brian that open, honest dialog doesn't exist between our leadership institutions and the people they serve (nominally, at least). If we could be direct about the challenges we face and the true state of our situation, we could develop and support the programs and shared sacrifices that may actually make a difference. But instead, we're handed pablum and told not to worry (Go shopping!), and the hole that's hidden from us just grows wider and deeper…

The inevitable endgame in this story is that events eventually overwhelm the Fed's ability to contain them and that natural market forces manifest at a shocking magnitude as the system seismically corrects to a more sustainable baseline.