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We're at a strange moment, trembling between optimism and pessimism. Much of this is economic; after a gloomy four years or so, there are signs that a more solid economic recovery may be in the works. But then there are gas prices. And Greece. And Iran. Continue reading
In his new book, UCLA law professor and popular blogger Stephen Bainbridge provides a longer historical perspective on one aspect of the choking proliferation of rulemaking. Continue reading
So you came here expecting serious treatment of major brow-beetling issues: finance, politics, economics, the rise and fall of nations. Forget it. I want to discuss, well, dogs. Continue reading
The civilized world, finance and regulatory division, is furiously writing comment papers on the now-famous Volcker Rule to get in under the deadline. Why do they wait, like tardy students, until the last minute? Continue reading
We wish for simple answers, but there are none as long as we want all the good things finance showers upon us, and none of the bad. Continue reading
A look at David Graeber's 'Debt: The First 5,000 Years' and Louis Hyman's 'Debtor Nation: The History of America in Red Ink.' Continue reading
Fukuyama sweeps through history at 20,000 feet, identifying peaks and valleys and sites of local interest. And that's, of course, the problem: You're way up in the air, wondering what life is really like down there on the chaotic, messy, murky historical ground. Continue reading
MIT economics professor Andrew Lo has written a paper for the 'Journal of Economic Literature' summarizing, with a few general points, some 21 books on the financial crisis. This is a task I, a certified lunatic, also tackled several years ago. Continue reading
Traditional banking is a difficult, commoditized service business, shorn of products that make fat profits. Continue reading
OWS is, in a sense, running for office just as hard as Gingrich, Romney and Obama. But the task is far more difficult. Continue reading
