To finance this trade deficit, the U.S. has to borrow from the rest of the world or sell American assets like stocks, businesses, and real estate to the rest of the world.

Domestic inflation reflects domestic monetary policy.

So just as I want pilots on the planes that I fly, when it comes to monetary policy, I want to think that there is someone with sound judgement at the controls.

The price of imported oil in the US doubled between summer 2003 and summer 2005, reducing consumers' purchasing power by more than 1 per cent of gross domestic product.

Thirty years ago, many economists argued that inflation was a kind of minor inconvenience and that the cost of reducing inflation was too high a price to pay. No one would make those arguments today.

Inflation is lower and more stable and the real business cycle fluctuations are more modest.

An increase in the relative price of products from the low wage manufacturers in Asia and Latin America will also make those products less attractive to American consumers.

Unless the trade deficit shrinks, the combination of the trade deficit and the interest and dividend payments to foreigners will grow ever more rapidly.

The only way that we can reduce our financial dependence on the inflow of funds from the rest of the world is to reduce our trade deficit.

A second reason why science cannot replace judgement is the behavior of financial markets.

The more competitive value of the dollar turned around the trade deficit.

Writing is painting for the imagination!

Maybe I should love someone mundane and let them bore me to death.

In politics and passion, perception is reality.

My own father had always said the measure of a man wasn't how many times or how hard he got knocked down, but how fast he got back up.

My guess is many top athletes, distance runners included, use performance-enhancing drugs, enough so that the problem must be tackled.

The god of war hates those who hesitate.

Evil can do anything, for a price.

The writing ethic was influenced - when you have to write every day, there's no such thing as writer's block.

Money is only interesting for what it lets you do and create.

I am definitely a person of color.