But he has implied that they should take a pause. The economy would continue to expand but at a slightly slower pace. Everyone would be satisfied. The trouble is that Greenspan's rate increases may not suffice to douse investors' enthusiasm. The crux of his problem is the inertia of opinion.
People believe what they believe.
It might take harsh experience to convince them otherwise. But they're the exceptions, not the rule. The 1929 stock market crash seems to suggest the opposite. By November, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 48 percent from its peak. But this was only half the story.