Ben Stein: Man of the Scammers

As noted, there has been some nice sane commentary on the sub-prime gloom, most of which has been focused on the fact that the markets should not be confused with the overall economy. Other coverage has appropriately slapped whiny greedsters looking for government bail-outs. But Ben Stein's NYT column over the weekend makes a lonesome point of great relevance, reminding us that the vast majority of those who bought houses with sub-prime lending have not defaulted, and are enjoying perhaps the most personally and financially enabling of endeavors -- home ownership.

While some regional reporters like the AJC's Carrie Teagardin have delivered thoughtful looks at the grassroots implications of the woes, Stein's piece shows by example that most U.S. business news is still largely written for a couple of hundred thousand people in New York and Washington. He also makes it clear than it's not just the fat cats who got us into this, and that scammers exist at every level of the food chain.