History promises inflation, not deflation. The great depression was deflationary, but the great depression did not feature helicopter Ben at the helm. I suspect Paulson's recent decision to not purchase troubled assets has a simple genesis. Bernanke is doing it instead,

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aatl...

Henry Paulson said in September they would comply with congressional demands for transparency in a $700 billion bailout of the banking system. Two months later, as the Fed lends far more than that in separate rescue programs that didn't require approval by Congress, Americans have no idea where their money is going or what securities the banks are pledging in return.

Well, I doubt Ben would buy quality securities since quality securities are usually sold on the open market.