I'm half way through Michael Lewis's The Big Short. It's too soon to give a full review, but I wanted to jot down a couple of quick observations before I forget.

The book is distressing in a couple of ways, none of those ways have anything to do with Lewis. First, Steve and I are just a couple of degrees of separation from some of the main characters in this book. We didn't know the big players, but friends of ours did. Some friends actually had a hand in this mess on Wall Street. Now, these are good people who are kind to their children, are fine members of the community, and don't kick dogs in the street. The system has been set up to insulate individuals from the broader repercussions of their actions. Unless things change, this is going to happen again.

Second, I am just terrible with money stuff. Lewis uses terminology that Steve uses every day when he comes home from work, and I still have no idea what Lewis talking about when he gets into the details of the crash. ISDA and credit default swaps and all that. I should know what those terms mean. Frankly, when Steve talks about that stuff, I just hear "waa waa waa," like the grown ups in a Peanuts cartoon. Unless the public (and me, too) keeps a closer eye on Wall Street, this is going to happen again.