LAS VEGAS — ACUMA President Bob Dorsa challenged the 200+ attendees at its Fall Conference here to make history today. "The future of what happens in the credit union movement for the next 10-20 years lies in this room. That is to make credit unions one of the leading providers of home mortgages for American consumers," he said.

Dr. Peter Navarro, PhD and associate professor of Economics at the University of California, Irvine gave ACUMA members a primer on how to do their own economic forcast. He debunked the Fed's recent actions and blasted former Chairman Alan Greenspan's handling of monetary policy over his 17-year reign. "He caused the tech bubble and the present housing bubble," Navarro said. "And The Fed screws up more times than they get it right. Fed Chairman are always professional liars. They sell confidence, and sometimes it's not in our best interests to hear the whole truth."

The "soft landing" we can all hope for will necessitate business spending to pick up where consumer spending has dropped. The "hard landing," should it come, will come with a resounding thud.