Greenspan's Putzpa

Forget "Greenspan's put". Greenspan's chutzpa may well be his greatest legacy.

First, he advised America's homebuyers, at the worst possible point in the economic cycle, to go out and get some of that new financing, such as an adjustable rate mortgage.

Then, when all that home ownership via new fangled financing began shaking the foundations of the housing market, he said, he detected "early signs of stabilization" in the housing market.

When the housing market teetered and began falling over the brink of collapse, he said, "This is not the bottom, but the worst is behind us."

And now, after encouraging the mortgage market meltdown, ignoring the signs it was approaching, failing to do anything to alleviate it when he had his hands on the controls -- now, and you really got to admire his chutzpa for this, he says:

he favors spending U.S. government money to bail out mortgage borrowers who risk losing their homes because they can't make payments.

If Greenspan had kept his balls and stuck to his central banking when he first noted that the markets, well in advance of the dot-com boom/bust, were engaging in too much irrational exuberance, rather than become Wall Street's eunich muse, he wouldn't need the chutzpa award now.

Putzpa?