Central Banking in a Democracy: The Federal Reserve and its Alternatives

The Federal Reserve System, which has been Congress’s agent for the control of money since 1913, has a mixed reputation. Its errors have been huge. It was the principal cause of the Great Depression of the 1930s and the inflation of the 1970s, and participated in the massive bailouts of financial institutions at taxpayers' expense during the recent Great Recession.

This book is a study of the causes of the Fed’s errors, with lessons for an improved monetary authority, beginning with an exami...