4.7 KiB
[RT] The Big Short builds a smart comedy out of the 2008 mortgage crisis
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Author: u/None *
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URL:
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Score: 10
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Created: 2015-12-26T05:57:55
Post:
Comments:
u/None [+11] (6 minutes later)
I strongly urge everyone to go see this film. If you're thinking that's because of my politics, just go see the film, because the film isn't about my politics.
- It's about checking the numbers when other people won't.
- It's about putting your money on the numbers when everyone else is playing dumb.
- It's about sexy celebrities explaining financial instruments.
- It's about people treating "X% chance of Y" like it's entirely real and actually matters.
- It's about the market remaining irrational longer than you can remain solvent.
- It's ultimately about the consequences of winning when you were betting against basically everyone else.
u/Uncaffeinated [+6] (14 hours later)
I just got back from seeing the movie.
If you read The Economist, you won't learn anything from the movie, but it still manages to be entertaining and suspenseful.
The one thing I didn't like were the celebrity interludes. The first one is literally just some woman in a bubble bath talking about mortgages for a while. Those bits are probably aimed at a different audience than me.
u/None [+3] (45 minutes later)
Can't wait for the movie 10 years from now to explain QE to everyone.
u/None [+3] (13 hours later)
For a contrary perspective, here is a short largely negative review by Eric Posner, who has taught a course on the financial crisis at the U of C law school. Here is some followup criticism again by Posner.
u/EliezerYudkowsky [+8] Godric Gryffindor (14 hours later)
Wasn't Eric Posner the guy who claimed we need to shut down the free Internet to fight ISIS?
u/alexanderwales [+7] Time flies like an arrow (14 hours later)
This article, "ISIS Gives Us No Choice but to Consider Limits on Speech". It's one part treating ISIS propoganda like an infohazard, one part being contrarian for page views, one part Posner being a moron.
u/None [+5] (15 hours later)
Yep, same person.
IMHO, Posner suffers from a sort of contrarian-disease common to many academics. In academia, sometimes you get more brownie points for being clever than for being correct.
A defense of free speech along the standard lines will bring out a big yawn. An attack on free speech that lands more punches than you'd expect will get you an article in Slate. See also Posner's response to the critics on free speech, which is also more persuasive than I would guessed it could be. I wonder if he plans to turn these arguments into an article for a law review.
I find him to be a valuable person to read provided one filters for the above bias. As far as The Big Short, for example, I think he has some good criticisms.
u/blazinghand [+2] Chaos Undivided (2 hours later)
This is a film adaption of the novel, which is excellent (amazon link) and worth a read. You'll learn more than you ever thought you'd know about the subprime mortgage crisis.
u/Uncaffeinated [+1] (8 hours later)
I haven't seen the movie, but I've read complaints that it implies noone forsaw the housing crash so that the heroes look smarter. People had been talking about the housing bubble for years. It was obvious to anyone who's salary didn't depend on not understanding it.
This will create a situation in which millions of families have little or no equity in their homes. This is an especially serious issue with the large baby boom cohort nearing retirement. It will also lead to a surge in mortgage default rates, as many homeowners opt not to keep paying a mortgage that exceeds the value of their home. This could place serious stress on the financial system.
http://cepr.net/publications/reports/the-run-up-in-home-prices-is-it-real-or-is-it-another-bubble
u/None [+2] (9 hours later)
People had been talking about the housing bubble for years. It was obvious to anyone who's salary didn't depend on not understanding it.
My father certainly had. On the other hand, one of the single most important components of "rationality" is actually listening to the evidence, even when you're paid not to.