How do increased "risk appetites" really help anything?

What does the ghost of Christmas Future have to show us?  What grave?  What empty chair?  What jokers at the funeral?

The feds don't know what they are doing.  What might happen?  Here are some guesses.

At least one of Mr. Bernanke's aims was realized.

Practically every government in the developed world faces the same problem. National. State. Local. Expenses grew during the boom years. We all know why. Politicians prefer to spend then to save.

If you work for the feds -- directly or indirectly -- you get more money.  Most likely, you're no longer creating wealth; you're consuming wealth that others created.  That’s what being a zombie is all about.

Forget the taxes. Forget the cuts. Everybody gets something.

Investors were encouraged recently because small businesses had turned optimistic.  Yet the level of optimism is still lower than it was in the last 20 years.

The "recovery" is too weak to raise rates, said the Fed.  And the economy may need more stimulus.

Market analysts say earnings will hit record highs, but are stocks the way to go?