Ya Think?!?: OECD Publishes Report, Says Housing Sparked the Financial Crisis

From the Department of Better-Late-Than-Never? Or is it the Department of So-Unbelievably-Late-It-Borders-On-Idiocy? You decide!

The OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) has a report out today, saying that the housing markets in the developed economies caused the crisis. According to these geniuses:

Poorly managed housing markets played a key role in triggering the recent global financial crisis and may be slowing the recovery. A new OECD study offers governments a roadmap for sounder housing policies.

Ya think?

The study goes on to point out further obvious tid-bits: How governments’ efforts at home ownership created perverse incentives; lax supervision and mortgage market deregulation heightened instability; housing prices in real terms rose 90% in ten years; and how underwater houses serve to curtail labor movement, as underwater homeowners cannot sell and move to where there is work.

But the biggest “insight” of these geniuses deserves to be highlighted: In their own words, “Poorly managed housing markets played a key role in triggering the recent global financial crisis and may be slowing the recovery.”

Ya think?!?!?

This is yet another example of mainstream economic “thinking”: It took the geniuses at the OECD over two fucking years to figure out what people were saying before the crisis happened! And now they’re saying it like it’s the biggest, most breathtaking insight—not only that, but now, quote, the “new OECD study offers governments a roadmap for sounder housing policies.”!!

In other words, the same fools who didn’t see the crisis coming are now offering themselves up as saviors who know how to make sure this never ever happens again!!!

Someone should take these guys out behind the barn and shoot them.

Now, it’s easy to say that the crisis was triggered and exacerbated by housing—but at the time? Mainstream economists—including all the drones at the OECD—said housing prices were fine! There was no bubble! You don’t know what you’re talking about!

Look how that ended.

Inflation—and hyperinflation—is coming, and will hit in 2011–2012. Drones at the OECD and just about every other mainstream economist is saying that food and commodity price rises are nothing to be concerned about—they are not inflationary! And QE, QE-lite and QE-2? Not inflationary!

Mm-hmm: I bet a bushel of wheat that in 2015, there will be another OECD study, proclaiming, “Stimulus Monetary Policies in 2010 Caused Hyperinflationary Crisis”.