Yogi Berra, the Old Lady of Threadneedle St, and Money Wisdom

Yogi Berra, the Old Lady of Threadneedle St, and Money Wisdom

Are central bankers about to embrace the real world? The events at most central banking conclaves are a total, excruciating, bore. The recent gathering of the Federal Reserve’s tribes at Jackson Hole, however, produced an elegant, compelling, presentation by rising star central banker Andy Haldane. Finally, a youth in the banquet hall declaring that the Emperor has no clothes.

Haldane’s speech, as analyzed by my colleague Charles Kadlec, comes down to this: “The essence of Haldane’s point is the shift from simple, easily understood broad based rules under Basel I to more complex rules is very dubious. This approach made...