1. Why was the inflation at the end of the Golden Age so disruptive? Do you think that even without the two oil shocks it would have become so powerful a force? Without the Vietnam War? Was it "in the cards," or was it the product of these two political events?
2. How would you describe "stagflation" as opposed to "inflation"? Does it refer to the presence or absence of economic growth? What, in turn, determines how strong growth will be?
3. The Federal Reserve has the power to change the rate of interest that it charges its member banks when they borrow reserves (government bonds) from the Fed. Why would a member bank want more reserves? Why would a higher rate of interest change the interest rate that a bank charges a company seeking a loan?
4. Inequality has been a growing concern for Americans. Do you think there is some "right" distribution of income? How would it be determined? Why is a growing percentage of income going to high-income families and a declining percentage going to low- income families regarded as an unwelcome phenomenon? Is the reason moral, economic, or both?