Recent media stories have chronicled in great detail the events of the last couple of years. A pair of conclusions might be fairly drawn from these early drafts of history. One is that the financial-market turmoil of the last year proved to be of significant consequence to the economy. The second is that the Federal Reserve distinguished itself from historical analogues by taking extraordinary actions to address risks to the economy. Commentators, however, tend to disagree as to whether the extraordinary actions undertaken were to the good or the detriment of the U.S. economy in the long-run.

As...