A WAYS TO GO

Most investors worthy of the name know who Big Ben Bernanke is, the $250,000 a speech speech maker.

Just kidding.

Like those who have gone before him, Bernanke is now moving about trying to solidify his place in Federal Reserve history.  And for him it's most likely going to be a hard sell. There's a certain irony here since Bernanke described himself on the job as a salesman, trying to sell the pubic that all is well that ends swell.

For it to end well for him he has to sell the public on the idea of economic recovery from the 2008 crisis that continues to remain elusive to say the least in the minds of many Americans. After a recent speech in New York the former Princeton economics professor was asked:

"....who was to blame for the 2008 financial crisis, he pleaded for some understanding from historians, saying:

Nobody is going to come out looking all that good, I tell you, when historians write it, but again I ask only for those future stories to think in real time and don’t impose the retrospective knowledge on what we were seeing as we went through the crisis.”

Even as Bernanke works hard to ensure his legacy is portrayed in a more positive light, there is a feeling that most Americans could not care less.

“You know, according to a recent poll, 17% of the population still thinks that Alan Greenspan is the chairman of the Federal Reserve. So I must have made a big impression,” Bernanke joked Wednesday, referring to a Pew Research Center poll that came out earlier this month. 

Bernanke painted himself as a salesman – one who has to sell the message of recovery to the public. It’s something he feels he hasn’t done well.

One of the parts of being a Fed chairman that Bernanke found to be a bit difficult is communicating with three different audiences simultaneously: the markets, the US Congress and the public.

He suggested that he felt burdened by the weight of what he could say and its effect on markets.

http://www.theguardian.com/money/us-money-blog/2014/oct/10/ben-bernanke-set-record-straight-book

Judging from stock market reactions the last few days, well looks as if its got a ways to go, Mr. Bernanke.