there's something called the "Taylor rule" which is a mechanical rule for monetary policy. It tracks Fed policy pretty well. But Greenspan seems to have added a major subjective, intuitive, feel to it. Responding to the E. Asian and Russian financial melt-downs of the late 1990s, he deviated from Taylor. The rapid cuts in interest rates in 2001 also deviated from Taylor.
(does that make him a "deviated prevert"? History will tell...) -- Jim Devine / Bust Big Brother Bush! "Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." -- Gertrude Stein