One of the world's top monetary historians Michael D. Bordo, Professor at Rutgers University, sees alarming parallels between today and the catastrophic 1930s.KEY POINTSThe "Wily Coyote Moment"· Markets running on air over a fiscal cliff - haven't looked down yet· Sudden crisis could hit when confidence breaksFed Under Attack· Trump pressuring Fed just like Nixon did in the 1970s (led to runaway inflation)· Attempt to fire Lisa Cook threatens central bank independencePerfect Storm Brewing· Unsustainable debt + protectionism + potential tech bubble· Globalization reversing like it did 100 years ago· "All the bad policies from the 1930s are coming back"What Must Be Done· Keep central banks independent and credible· Focus only on price stability· Remember: nationalism and protectionism led to disaster before"I find the current era extremely worrisome. In some ways it reminds me of the 1930s."Michael D. Bordo is a Board of Governors Professor of Economics and director of the Center for Monetary and Financial History at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey.Interview conducted by Jiri Zatloukal, Prague Finance Institute