In a recent blog post Ben Bernanke criticized the use of rules-based monetary policy in which the central bank endeavors to set the instruments of policy in a predictable rule-like manner.

The post attracted a lot of attention, but this is not the first time Ben has criticized rules-based monetary policy. Soon after he joined the Federal Reserve Board he gave his “constrained discretion” speech in 2003 criticizing such policies, focusing his criticism on Milton Friedman’s well-known rule for the money supply. His recent criticism...