What's the Fed to do?

Even though Wall Street has suddenly decided that American companies are worth 15% more than they were worth at about 2:00p.m. est on Friday. I still don't think that anyone has any clue what's going on with the American and global economy. Last week was mostly bad news all around. This is a short week here in the States and I expect it to be quiet.

But of interest is a continuation of what I touched on Friday... what is the Fed to do?

Right before Halloween, the Fed set the target rate for federal funds at 1%. But the reality is much lower than that: the effective rate according to the Economist is 0.25% (it is now about 0.50%):

The irony is that, were the gap to disappear, there would be a de facto tightening of monetary policy. On the other hand, if the effective rate remains near zero, the Fed will have to turn to more unconventional means of stimulating growth. Michael Feroli of JPMorgan Chase proposes outright purchases of mortgage-backed securities—another faint echo of Japan.

So what are unconventional means?

I'm not sure, but one suggestion: Don't do what Japan has done since the 1990s.