A long time ago (in financial crisis terms), ozy_y2k and I had a discussion on the application of modeling to finance, and the potential implications of doing a lousy job. It's a new year, and people are starting to ask what happened ... they want to know how could so many smart, learned people have gotten everything so wrong. Joe Nocera provides a long piece on this very topic from...

Many happy returns to ozy_y2k and ikkarus01 ! I hope your respective birthdays were full of fun and enjoyment, and if not, I at least hope they didn't completely suck. :)

One story that has been playing out of late has been an apparent struggle between the Treasury and the FDIC. The FDIC has been pushing a program to assist homeowners through the restructuring of their mortgage terms, and the Treasury has been having none of it. There appears to be a fundamental disagreement (or at least the appearance of one) in terms of what is possible when it comes to rejigging...