So, it all boiled down to a ‘hard’ choice. On the one hand, mortgage bankers risked being called racists if they held fast to prudence in the face of ACORN’s threats–rascism having been declared the worst imaginable crime in a liberal society. And on the other hand, those bankers could become stinking rich by making risky loans because they could pretend that those loans were backed by federal guarantees–and surely there is no better reward for being ‘socially responsible’ than making a lot of money. Now here we are….

If there is such a thing as social engineering, then this must be its Tacoma Narrows Bridge.