The long-time reader will not be surprised to hear that I have some thoughts on the current state of the markets.  Among other things, I’m somewhat frustrated with the cycle of crisis-bailout-bigger crisis that’s been going on since people — or rather, investment bankers and politicians — started noticing that most mortgage debt was of dubious quality.  (I’m also annoyed with the shrill “progressive” hecklers who insist that this is entirely a failure of free-market ideology, though I suppose it’s a bit idealistic to expect shrill “progressive” hecklers to read Hayek.)

That long-time reader will have to wait a little longer for me to rant and rave about the credit crisis du jour, as I plan to actually learn something about the subject before I do so.  (I suppose it’s a bit idealistic to expect shrill “progressive” hecklers to… never mind.)  However, a much more astute economist than I is doing the same thing — educating himself before he rants — and he’s doing it publicly.

Go have a read at Cafe Hayek, if you’re interested in this sort of thing.  Russell Roberts is posting what amounts to a well-educated cross between research notes and stream-of-consciousness speculation, and much like Bryan Kaplan he’s doing a marvelous job of keeping an open mind.