Just in case you were wondering how fast the Fed has expanded the monetary base, here’s a graph (click on it for a larger view) from FTAlphaville that pretty much puts it into perspective.

The point of the article is that the U.S. has not only been much more agressive at the outset than was Japan (pretty obvious) but that in targeting a range of asset classes for purchase instead of just relying on increasing bank reserves in hopes of goosing spending the payoff should come quicker.

That’s sort of like saying that if you go to Las Vegas and bet a lot of money you stand to win a lot. Of course, the opposite can happen as well.