Fed Speak

Realtors, rejoice! You’ve found a surprising brother-in-arms — the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

At least, they agree with you on one thing: QR (quick response) codes. After spending the fall and part of the winter besieged by Occupy protesters, it seems the geeks at the Fed have gone on a low-key PR offensive, and QR codes are the weapon of choice.

Commuters exiting South Station last week were greeted with a little green sign plopped into the lawn on the Fed’s plaza — but instead of a stern warning to Keep off the Grass, they were given an opportunity to Learn More About The Fed.

Something charms your cynical Teller about the images of the be-suited wonks looking down at the mob outside their gates all those weeks and thinking: “You know, we ought to do something to explain ourselves to these people….what if we put up a sign asking the dirty hippies to whip out their smart phones and go to our website? It gets our message across, and absolutely avoids the smallest possibility of human contact.”