you do realize there are some advantages to a weak dollar? for example, it helps exports, and old debts become easier to pay off. I'm not saying this is necessarily a good thing, or if it is what the administration wants, i'm no economist. but maybe there is a rationalization for it, subjective or objective.

the same can be said for inflation. if you read the conservative political websites, everybody is terrified of Weimar-style hyper-inflation (and with good reason!). But if you read the financial websites, what really scares those boys is deflation, which is what we have now. these are the real business people, not the politicians and pundits who fancy themselves entrepreneurs. I think the government has made a conscious decision that some inflation, and even a possibility of big inflation, is preferable to a deflationary spiral which could send the economy into a tailspin.

i believe this is a deliberate policy decision. whether it is the right one, and if it is, whether they can manage it, remains to be seen. i really don't know what is the best way to go, or how far and how fast. but i do believe someone is working on it full time, and somehow i find that more reassuring than letting go of the controls and letting the plane fly itself. in my opinion, i think we already tried that and it didn't work.