Book and Blog Combo

Richard Posner continues to, in effect, revise and enlarge his latest book, A Failure of Capitalism, by posting timely short essays on his blog of the same name. His most recent entry, posted last night, evaluates the government's various responses to the depression so far. I'm pleased that, among other things, he takes the President to task for "leading the attack on the resistance of Chysler's secured creditors (whom he referred to unhelpfully as 'speculators,' when the government is desperate to encourage lending, including by lenders who will not lend without collateral that gives them a favored position should the borrower go broke)...."

This is the first time I've made intensive use of a book-blog combination. It works especially well here, because the book appeared in the midst of a crisis that is not yet ended and will have ramifications far into the future. Hearing Judge Posner's views on the changing situation is fascinating. They enhance the usefulness of having read the book, by causing me to employ what I picked up from the it. And the background knowledge provided by the book enables me to fit the blog updates into a larger argument.