By perfectly calibrating his message, this time, Bernanke was able to taper yet see equities climb by 1.75% and bond prices barely budge. Quite a difference from this past May. By combining tapering with a commitment to keep short-term rates low into 2015, Bernanke has reduced uncertainty and compensated markets for the knowledge that QE will shortly be history. He’s also emphatically saying that 2014 will be pretty good. Bravo!