Well, the article did hit the nail on the head. The incentives were just too tempting. Sell a bunch of crap debt and collect a commission. Buy that same crap debt, collect a commission. OK, lets call 'em "transaction costs".

Sad to say, the solution is lawsuits. Not by the borrowers or the lenders, but by investors who were duped by the fund managers. If the various mutual funds/hedge funds/money market packagers have a duty of diligence, then they can be sued for negligence. So, the companies get hit with settlements.

"So what?" says the retired hedge fund manager reclining in a therapeutic warm caviar bath. It's interesting that a company can be bankrupted by the malfeasance of individuals while those very individuals stand on sidelines debating which super yacht is best.

The point where things get fixed is when the funds turn around and sue the people that caused the mess.

It's a pretty long trail. The investors have to have been actually duped. The fund has to lose a lawsuit and get hit with a juicy settlement. The settlement might motivate the fund to evict the guilty and to sue them for the breach of some kind of duty or for negligence.

It probably won't work. Any break and the scum slips out of the bag.

Criminal charges are more likely to punish the soldiers while the generals simply change uniforms.

Damn. The incentives are huge and there's almost no down side. Enabling this sort of crap is a near perfect investment. Obscene gains with little to no risk.

we're hosed.

Eh?

Mostly on the right? Any data or are you just being snippy?

Specials for women at the gym. Interesting, but any man that really cares is in serious need of a life. I look at it as an opportunity to barter for cheaper fees for myself. It helps to be one of the nice people.

As for ladies night at a bar. Cool. Many women are more than happy to buy drinks for a nice man. It's all the better if the drinks are really cheap. Once again, opportunity knocks.

Sometimes a lady friend will suggest we go to a ladies night because she wants to treat. There is no rule that only single women can go to ladies night or that they must become prey.

If they bar owners were smart about it, they'd pay attention to what women like to drink versus what men like to drink. Adjust the prices accordingly. No discrimination, just expensive single malt scotch and cheap cherry mai tais.

Hunter is right. There are "levels" to waterboarding. That's why we need to quit focusing on waterboarding and instead focus on torture. It doesn't make sense to outlaw one specific torture technique. They'll just employ another.

As an example, consider assault. Threatening someone with a knife is an assault (if they feel they are immediate risk of bodily injury ...). Stabbing them with that knife is also assault. There's a big difference between threatening and stabbing, but they are both assaults.

Now consider waterboarding. Does holding someone down and threatening with a hose count? Do you have to actually spray the victim? Tie them down? The strict definition can cover a fairly wide range of asshole activities ranging from intimidation to drowning.

Returning to the assault example. We have a broad definition of assault and the courts use it well. We don't have assault with knife being all that different from assault with gun or car.

Torture is already legally defined in international law. I think we need to establish that it is bad - and prosecute the tortures. Focusing on waterboarding just serves short term prurient interest.

You're right, you are no lawyer. There is no law saying you must rat out your friends or anybody else. Keeping your mouth shut does not make you an accomplice.

On the other hand, if you help cover up the crime, you can be an accomplice. That takes some sort of positive action though.

As for the LW, run run run. No one is going to pin a medal on LW if she helps a bad man be good. Few will pity her when he turns on her. Odds are he will repeat his pattern. There's no sainthood in the wings for anyone trusting him to change.

The starter stock is pretty good. Now start up the algae vats. They get full of gook in a few days (maybe less). Empty vat, but don't clean it too well. Add algae yummies and wait a few days, etc.

The rate at which the algae reproduce allows the starter stock to adapt to its environment pretty quickly. No need to zap mutations into it. GM isn't needed. If it took a year per generation, then they'd use GM in a heart beat.

Add in that GM makes many people queasy. With this algae you have the best of all worlds. Green, friendly, and not GM.

The US economy was soaring under the clinton administration. Usually, that is a really good thing for the president's party. Eight years of peace, prosperity, and easy money.

Somehow, in the face of this, the dems managed to shoot themselves in both feet and an elbow. GW got elected and here we are.

I don't think recession will have that huge an effect on the democrap v. rethug contest. Neither is liked. If we're lucky, we'll see the rise of a 3rd party - but not leiberman.