If that panel had a surprise star, though, it was Father Robert Sirico of the Acton Institute, who cut through a lot of numerical haze by pointing out the moral dimensions of all economic choices – and that it is morally wrong to accept a loan that you know you are unlikely to be able to repay, and that it is equally wrong to loan money that is not yours to someone you know is unlikely to pay it back. At the heart of the housing/banking/market chaos is a lot of people who faced a choice that they had to know was wrong on some level, and did it anyway.
Speaking of the National Review cruise just ended: a number of emailers tell me that Mark Steyn was, as usual, followed everywhere he went by a visibly vibrating swarm of giggling ladies. I don’t know how his wife stands it; if Arnie had that effect on women, I’d cry every time he left the house.
