trying to keep it going, and most of the programs they're unveiling right now are geared towards that. The second thing they're trying to do is to keep confidence in the markets and in the wider economy. And again, that's part of what the game is right now. And that's an extremely difficult job to do. The third thing they're trying to do is to eventually help stimulate demand. But frankly, there's almost nothing the Fed can do in that respect right now because it doesn't matter how cheap money is or how many corporate bonds it buys and how much liquidity it pumps into the system. If people are terrified, they're not going to borrow money to spend money or to invest or anything like that, they're just not going to do it. And so, the idea of using Fed policy right now to boost demand is frankly ridiculous. But the Fed can and absolutely should try to maintain confidence insofar as it can and eventually and also most immediately keep the financial system going. The longer term question (23/43)
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