re: #229 WindUpBird

The problem is the means rapidly change in an unpredictable fashion due to lack of stability in the economy, which has come about because of lack of financial and housing/mortgage/lending regulation.

Ruin the market with fraud and moral hazard, then in the shambles of the economy, start starving and attacking government, which then allows more people to ruin the market further. Whee!

It’s not only or even mostly lack of regulation. It’s also lack will to reign in Fannie and Freddy, paired with a local willingness to let the unions run wild. Here’s a good article on how California has gotten into the mess its in:

The Golden State’s War on Itself