Even as the Fed continues to prepare its so-called exit strategy from the extraordinary support it has given the economy - and Wall Street - since 2008, "we also recognize that the economic outlook remains unusually uncertain," Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said today in prepared testimony before the Senate Banking Committee. "We remain prepared to take further policy actions as needed to foster a return to full utilization of our nation's productive potential in a context of price stability."

At 2 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Bernanke began the first of two days of Congressional testimony; any big fireworks probably will occur during the Q&A session, especially in the House tomorrow. Ahead of the semi-annual event, much of the unsolicited advice being given to the Fed chairman ran along the lines of Newsweek columnist Dan Gross' comments on Tech Ticker earlier this week: The Fed should be doing more to stimulate the economy and Bernanke should prod Congress to spend more money, not follow Europe's austerity measures.

Bernanke appears to have gotten the message, judging from the early reports on his prepared testimony.

As is so often the case, Peter Schiff of EuroPacific Capital has a very different message: "It's not that the Fed has done too little, they've done too much," Schiff says. "Interest rates are too low, they need to be much higher. "

By the same token (and economic philosophy), Schiff rejects the idea the U.S. government needs to do more to stimulate the economy. "The federal government is spending too much, they need to spend a lot less," he says. "It's government stimulus that is the source of our problems."

You Can't Drink More to Sober Up

From Schiff's Austrian-school-of-economics perspective, the U.S. economy is addicted to government stimulus and at risk of overdosing.

"The economy will never recover until the government stops sedating it with so-called stimulus," he says. "They're trying to sober up a drunk by giving him more alcohol - it won't work."

Schiff doesn't disagree with the widespread view that there will be economic upheaval if the Fed and Congress force the economy to go "cold turkey" rather than slowly weaning it off stimulus. But any short-term pain will be well worth the long-term gain, the money manager and Senate hopeful says.

"If you're overweight and you want to lose weight - diet and exercise are not a pleasant thing to do; but if you do it, you have positive long-term results," he says, the metaphors coming fast and furious. "If you're sick, sometimes you have to swallow bitter-tasting medicine. "

Based on the reaction of our audience, Schiff's "tough love" prescriptions appeal to a lot of Americans. But judging by his standing in the polls, few Americans are ready to trade short-term pain for the promise of long-term gains - at least not in Connecticut.