An interesting article in the Wall Street Journal today about Wells Fargo & Co. modifying some of its worst loans into interest-only loans got me thinking about the housing recovery in a new light.    Read More

The most commonly misunderstood narratives emerging from last year’s financial upheaval are that the crisis was caused by big banks, and that the crisis started with the failure of one big bank in particular – Lehman Brothers.    Read More

When Larry Summers, the President's Director of the National Economic Council, convenes the Obama administration's top economic officials this afternoon, they'll have no shortage of issues on the agenda: job losses, tepid growth, skyrocketing deficits, a weakening dollar, and tax increases just to name a few.   Read More

We can count our blessings. We can count sheep. We can count our chickens before they hatch. We can even count how many licks it takes to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop.   Read More

Halloween is fast approaching, so no one should be surprised to hear spine-tingling tales of myths and legends intended to give you the willies. So let's gather around the campfire, and listen through crossed fingers at nightmarish horror stories of...the pending collapse of the dollar.    Read More

Was the point of the financial rescue that our banks should LOSE money? With all of the hand-wringing this week about reported profits at JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, it seems some people would be happier if our banks had reported losses instead of impressive gains.    Read More

One of the most vexing problems that emerged from the financial crisis involves how the government deals with the pending failure of a large, systemically-important financial institution.    Read More

The health insurance industry deserves what it gets - if only its clumsy actions didn't have such dire implications for the rest of us.   Read More

After months of delays, false starts, and missed deadlines, months after the storied town hall meetings and long-ago deals with the pharmaceutical and insurance industries, you'd think the Senate Finance Committee's expected vote tomorrow on Chairman Max Baucus's health reform bill would at least be...consequential?    Read More

The White House is now considering new options for additional spending in light of weak employment data last weak - spending that would be intended to both boost employment and economic growth. But, in their latest round of rhetorical hijinx, the White House has instructed reporters not to call it "stimulus."    Read More