This book's title betrays at once that it belongs in the forecast literature. Peering into the future is a notoriously treacherous venture. Nevertheless, it has become a prac- tice endemic to the business and government worlds as well as to academia, especially economics. We like to be- lieve that the enormous growth of forecasting in the face of some disappointments reflects real needs of decision- makers (as well as the general public's well-warranted...