Ongoing grand plans to flood the economy market with money have reminded Bundesbank's Jens Weidmann of the scene in the play Faust - when the devil (Mephistopheles) 'disguised as a fool', convinces an emperor to issue large amounts of paper money - which solves the kingdom's financial problems in the short-term but ends rather badly in rampant inflation.
As The Telegraph [2] notes, without specifically mentioning Mario Draghi’s bond-buying programme, he said: “If a central bank can potentially create unlimited money from nothing, how can it ensure that money is sufficiently scarce to retain its value?” He added: “Yes, this temptation certainly exists, and many in monetary history have succumbed to it,” Mr Weidmann warned.
Although the remarks were in context - Frankfurt is currently marking the 180th anniversary of the death of Goethe - they defy calls by leaders for Mr Weidmann to tone down his criticism of the ECB, particularly at a febrile moment in the crisis.