Quick note

I'm entertaining a guest from the Old Country this week. This is my current excuse for this blog being a little more sporadic than I would like. Next week I will revert to blaming it on being overworked.

Somewhat preoccupied

I have, I confess, been somewhat consumed with the Paulson Plan. It will become a little broader going forward... but this is the seismic event of the moment. The focus is likely to remain for a little longer.

About this blog

So I'm starting a new blog. Why? The week just gone has seen a near meltdown of the Western financial apparatus. It is difficult to rationalise this as a freak anomaly. Fukuyama had it that the defeat of communism by Western capitalism marked the End of History; even 9/11, despite its enormous cultural impact, did not really call into question the West's ideological commitment to free market capitalism. The Economist asks: What next? That's what I want to know too.

I work on Wall Street. I am one of the villains of the piece. But this week has pricked my political conscience. I want something better than the corrupt poisonous hubris of... well my lot. If not to put into practice then at least to believe in.

I don't know what that is yet. This is a space for me to think about that.