In The Great Inflation and Its Aftermath, Robert Samuelson notes the paradox that a stable economy is consistent with greater anxiety.

A stable economy with stable prices requires low inflation. Competition keeps prices down, including competition for labor. Competition also puts mercenary competitive pressure on businesses, large and small. Thus the unwinding of the great inflation and the ensuing economic stabilization has led to more job turnover, greater wealth discrepancies, and more strains on business making it hard for business to accommodate larger social goals.

Yet the alternative – trying to legislate greater stability- ignores the complexity and speed of our economy and would likely give us more unemployment, more inflation, less growth and less stability.

It is better to leave something that it imperfect but good alone. In trying to solve our current problems we end up changing a system that solved previous problems.

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