Panic button?

The Fed has announced a trillion dollar purchase of US debt in the open market.  In simple English, the US is printing money on a massive scale and is sending a loud message to the world that it is doing so.  

This is before even Mr. Geithner and Mr. Bernanke have finished with their silly "stress tests" to determine which banks are solvent, which are not, to determine how much new money is needed by the banking sector.

I can smell the air of panic even as far down as Buenos Aires where I am now.  

Stock markets welcome the news.  US dollar tanks.  Gold up.  Even crude is up in the face of deepening global recession.  Long bonds rise as a knee jerk reaction since Uncle Sam is buying the stuff.  I rather think bonds are a huge bubble given the amount of money US is printing and will keep printing in the rest of 2009.   Inflation is inevitable at some point down the road.

What is really worrying is the sight of the economic team under Obama unraveling right in front of our eyes. Clueless in managing AIG and clueless in managing Wall Street.  Have a good day.