and early 2009, the world suffered the worst financial crisis since the great depression, a crisis which, had it been left unchecked, would have resulted in a global financial meltdown and an economic collapse. working with policymakers around the world, the federal reserve acted creatively and forcefully to help stabilize the financial system and halt the economic slide. our economy has been growing and adding jobs for more than two years now. but for a lot of people, i know, it doesn ’ t feel like the recession ever ended. the unemployment rate remains painfully high, and more than two - fifths of the unemployed have been out of work for longer than six months, by far the highest ratio since world war ii. these problems are very serious, and we at the federal reserve have been focusing intently on supporting job creation. supporting job creation is half of our marching orders, so to speak ; the other half is controlling inflation. or, in the language of the law that sets the mandate for monetary policy, the federal reserve is required to seek both maximum employment and price stability. we pursue those two important goals by influencing the level of interest rates and other financial conditions. my colleagues and i on the federal reserve ’ s monetary policymaking committee equate price stability with inflation being at 2 percent or a little less. that rate is bis central bankers ’ speeches low enough that people and businesses can make financial decisions without having to worry too much about rising costs, but high enough to keep the economy away from deflation – falling wages and prices – which is both a cause and a symptom of an extremely weak economy. although spikes in oil and food prices, and other transitory factors, pushed inflation up earlier this year, inflation appears to be moderating, and we expect, based on the best information that we have today, that it will remain reasonably close to our objective of 2 percent or a bit less for the foreseeable future. in the longer term, monetary policy is the main determinant of inflation, and so federal reserve policymakers have considerable latitude to choose our longer - term inflation goal. in contrast, “ maximum employment ” depends on many factors outside of the federal reserve ’ s control, such as the skills of the workforce and the pace of technological innovation. right now, my colleagues on the fed ’ s policymaking committee estimate that the u. s. economy could sustain an unemployment rate of somewhere between 5 and 6 percent without generating a buildup of inflation pressures.

to implement new rules that will make it easier for the government to unwind big financial firms if they get into trouble, rather than being faced with the terrible choice of either bailing them out or risking the collapse of the financial system if they fail. of course, the federal reserve was never intended to shoulder the entire burden of promoting economic prosperity. fostering healthy growth and job creation is a shared responsibility of all economic policymakers, in close cooperation with the private sector. spending and tax policy is of critical importance, but a wide range of other policies – pertaining to labor markets, housing, trade, taxation, and regulation, for example – also have important roles to play. bis central bankers ’ speeches financial protections for servicemembers the federal reserve, along with the other agencies, is working hard to enforce an array of strengthened regulations that protect mortgage borrowers, credit card holders, and other consumers of financial services. the people in this room should be aware, in particular, of the special rights and protections provided to military personnel by the servicemembers civil relief act. the law ’ s purpose is to allow servicemembers to perform their duties without worry of foreclosure, eviction, and civil prosecution – under most circumstances. it caps interest rates for debts incurred before a servicemember begins active duty, it prevents creditors from foreclosing on a home or repossessing a car without a court order, it gives servicemembers the option to terminate residential property and motor vehicle leases, it stays civil proceedings while servicemembers are on active duty, and it entitles servicemembers to reinstatement of health insurance that was in effect before their military service began. additionally, department of defense rules regulate the terms of certain kinds of high - cost loans to servicemembers and their families, such as payday loans, tax refund anticipation loans, and motor vehicle title loans. advice on securing and promising financial future it takes more than rules, however sound, and enforcement, however diligent, to provide you and your families with a promising financial future. while i have the pulpit, so to speak, permit me to offer three pieces of advice. first, while you are in the military, take advantage of training opportunities. many specific skills learned in the military – nursing and healthcare, mechanics, computer programming, police and security work – transfer to civilian jobs. the military also offers training in various life skills. for instance, this