"Now if one studies history one finds out that the Federal Reserve was formed to prevent speculative panics, to maintain the value of the dollar, to preserve the purchasing power of the consumer, and to responsibly manage the nations money supply. Has an organization ever strayed as far from accomplishing its goals as the Fed?" -- Walter Zimmerman, ICAP
On the other hand, once one realizes that the real mission of the Fed is to protect the big banks and transfer the wealth of the citizens of the US to those banks, it is immensely successful!
