Foreword

This pamphlet assembles about forty pastiches written over a period of some 27 years. Most were composed on the occasion of international monetary meetings which I attended during this period, and hence were directed to a group of initiates. I wish to express here my heartiest thanks to those friends who took the initiative of reuniting what was originally meant to be only ephemeral.

The fact that the section on the international monetary system begins with the Ten Commandments (before the Ten themselves were conceived) and ends with the Book of Genesis is purely fortuitous and does not imply in any way that the system is regressing toward chaos.

The fact that, during all these years, l have had the privilege of overhearing the discussions of an elite of monetary officials has helped me to formulate two laws for
the connoisseur of communiqués. The first of “'Guetta's laws" is that the Iength of press communiqués is inversely proportional to their substance; the second is that even subjects heavier than hot air will fly.

The reader will find at the end of each pastiche a short note summarizing the events which gave it birth. Fortunately» all opinions, whether implicit or explicit, expressed in this pamphlet reflect only my own views.

Aldo Guetta
February 25 1988